


The Bachelorette Party

by CallMeJubilee



Category: Little Mix (Band), One Direction (Band)
Genre: F/M, Leigham, Leigharry, Nesy, Slight Payzer, Stripper!Liam, ZADE, affair, stripper!Louis, stripper!Zayn, stripper!niall
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-28
Updated: 2015-08-07
Packaged: 2018-02-15 05:04:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 43,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2216790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CallMeJubilee/pseuds/CallMeJubilee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After all, what were bachelorette parties for?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

There was someone knocking at her front door and it was frustrating her to no end. 

Seriously. She was trying to have her bachelorette party and everyone she'd invited was in attendance. The party was nearing the end and everyone was drunk, she was especially drunk and didn't feel like moving.

"Just answer the damn door, Leigh-Anne!" one of her bridesmaids yelled before gulping down another sip of her wine.

"I...I don't think I can move," she replied, slumped over the arm of her chair and her guests laughed. "What kinda wine is this, Jesy??"

"Oh, you know...one of my family's specials.." Jesy answered and burst into a fit of laughter with the rest of the group surrounding the bride to be in the middle of them.

"Figures," Leigh-Anne huffed, comically blowing some of her bang out of her eyes. 

Slowly she raised herself, grabbing onto the nearest person who's name she couldn't place, kinda looked like her sister, whoever, and the arm of the chair her bridesmaids had decorated for her. Stumbling to the door, she looked out the peephole to identify the party crasher, he was handsome and patiently waiting to be let in.

'Hold up..' 

She turned around and sent her best intoxicated glare at Jesy.

"I thought I said no strippers?!" For goodness sake, her mother was there!

Jesy looked around at the others guests before shrugging her shoulders. "I didn't order you any strippers, but let them in anyways! I could use a stripper right now!" she hollered.

"Then who got the strippers?" she looked around and made eye contact with all of her bridesmaids except one. "Jade?! Come on, I said no strippers! Harry and I agreed that if he couldn't have strippers, I couldn't have strippers."

"I know, I know! I'm a dirty girl!" Just a little bit... but it was with the best intentions.

"Don't lie to yourself, Leigh," Jesy spoke up. "You know he's got strippers at his party. That's right, ass and titties everywhere. Do you really think his friends weren't going to get them? Just live a little before you get hitched, no biggie. It's not like you're gonna sleep with the guy."

Her foggy brain mulled over her  friends words before asking her mother what she thought, she was the oldest and "wisest" person in attendance.

"Honey, if you don't want the stripper, I'll take him," she cheered and high-fived Jade and Perrie.

The stripper knocked on the door again and cleared his throat, ready to speak.

"I can hear everything you're saying..." he said awkwardly through the large, old door. Nervously he scratched his head and rubbed his neck thinking that this could've gone smoother. "I can leave?"

She was listening to him but taken in by the sound of his voice. That fifth glass of wine caused a lapse in her judgement and she undid the locks and stepped aside to let him in. He turned away from her for a second and three other men around his age followed, one holding a stereo and a duffle bag.

"Jade! How many strippers did you get??" she screeched, watching them file in and the one carrying their boom box looking for an outlet. Jesy kindly pointed to the nearest one and he sent her a sheepish smile and nod.

"Just four! One for you and one for me, Jes and Pez," she blushed looking away. 

"And you didn't get me one?" Leigh-Anne's mother whispered in Jade's ear. "You greedy bitch," she joked.

A plummer.

Fireman.

Doctor.

And Policeman.

All stood before the guests and Leigh-Anne couldn't keep her eyes off them long enough to actually close the door, the freezing night air caused her to shiver and remember, 'Hey, I actually have the door open and the dress I'm wearing is kinda short.'

She walked back to her seat and gained all four of the strippers attention. Finally being able to have a good look at them she almost would've started salivating at the sight of them if it wasn't for that huge engagement ring sitting pretty on her left hand.

"And you're the bride to be?" the 'doctor' spoke. His eyes held a mischief like she'd never seen before and she knew she was in for it.

"Yeah, in two weeks." She smiled kindly, lifting her hand to show her ring, her guests squealed.

"Well congrats!" he clapped his hands a few times and smirked at the others who clapped along. "We heared you're not into cliché strippers so let's just get right to it, shall we?" She nodded and prayed she wouldn't enjoy this as much as her body was starting to just from the sight of them fully clothed and standing still. She wouldn't be able to handle them practically naked and moving suggestively.

She was going to blame the wine.

The doctor slowly turned towards the guest and smiled at each one.

"I'm Louis M.D.," he introduced pulling on his coat. "I'm the doctor, here to assure you that any self orgasms you may experience is completely normal and if you aren't sure, I'll be happy to check." He winked at Leigh-Anne's mother who was readily digging into her her purse for money.

"If any of you get too hot, I'll be helping you with the assistance of me big fire hose." The dirty blonde spoke and patted his crotch while grinning. "Call me Niall."

"Oh Mr. Fireman!" Jesy cooed and waved. "I've got something you need to put out already!"

"Ma'am, give me one second and I'll be right over," he replied and laughed.

"Officer Zayn," the raventte said stepping forward and tucking his thumbs in his belt-loops and rocking back and forth. "You all have the right to scream as loud as you want and touch everything above the belt. But if you get outta line, I might have to cuff ya."

"Officer Zayn!" Perrie yelled. "I've got about 15 parking tickets I still haven't paid off. I think we need to talk."

Zayn removed his shades and looked Perrie over. 

"Parking tickets you say?" 

Perrie nodded eagerly, no secret to her friends that she was a terrible driver beyond parking tickets. "And I jaywalk!" 

Zayn faked gasped. "Sounds like I've got a delinquent on my hands tonight... Good. Those are my favorites." He winked at Perrie who winked back and laughed.

"And lastly, if you experience any leaky pipes, just call me and I'll fix it. I'm Liam," the last one, who had knocked on Leigh-Anne's door, introduced with a soft smile.  
   
"Great! Now that that's outta the way, Niall?" Louis signaled, and Niall pressed play on their stereo. "Sit back, and relax ladies. We'll be all night."

_x

"I don't have to do this if you don't want me to," Liam whispered in Leigh-Anne's ear while slowly and very lightly grinding on her. Sure, give him the guest of honor and have him not be allowed to touch her.

"I don't.." she mumbled closing her eyes. 

Everyone was enjoying themselves and had the other dancers down to their lasts bits of clothing, their speedos filled to the brim with money. Surprisingly, Perrie had been handcuffed to Jade, Officer Zayn seemed to have a hard time deciding which one of them was worse after Jade confessed to not recycling and littering instead. Jade might have been crowned the winner considering she was wearing his hat while Perrie had his glasses tucked in her shirt. Jesy and the Fire Chief had gotten too raunchy after he donned her with his fire hat and they went to find a bedroom and christen the new sheets Leigh-Anne had just bought. The one thing that didn't come as a shock was that her mother had also been tied down...with Doctor Louis' tie for being too handsy; Leigh-Anne had to get it from somewhere.

"I can stop. Zayn has his hands full with the two of your friends over there," Liam lied looking over his shoulder.

Zayn was handling them perfectly since he preferred his girls in twos to begin with.

Liam began pulling away but Leigh-Anne's finger caught his belt loop and brought him closer.

"I didn't say stop," she whispered.

In her back of her mind she knew that yes, Harry probably, most likely had strippers entertaining him but that didn't make this right...or did it? This would be the last time she could let lose before settling into the role of "Mrs. Styles," she wanted to enjoy it.

Liam sighed and bowed his head, it rested on her shoulder and she shuddered from his warm breath on her skin.

"It helps when you relax," he instructed. "I'm not going to touch you...much." 

"Yeah.." She opened her eyes and softly pushed him off her. She grabbed her glass, downed every last drop and licked her lips; whatever was in that wine was decadent.

"Shirt off. Now," she demanded, glancing over to the others still throwing money at his friends or gingerly tucking it in their underwear. Her mom was having a good time with Louis, too much of a good time...she need to go to sleep.

"But-"

"Weren't you hired to entertain me?" she asked, innocently tilting her head to the side and Liam nodded obediently. "Good, so entertain me. Lose the shirt."

Once again he nodded and stripped off his shirt. Leigh-Anne could kick herself seeing that the guy was cut in all the right places and was keeping that from her this entire time. Liam could've just said, 'Hey, I've got a mean six pack, wanna see?' and she would have been a bit more compliant.

"Better." Leigh-Anne smiled.

"Much better," Liam agreed under his breath, he was almost running a fever dancing with his shirt on. He contemplated having her drink more wine so he would be allowed to take his pants off at some point.

Leigh-Anne threw her head back in a laugh, hearing him agree and caused her blonde friend to whistle at the two of them.

"Get it, Leigh! Let him fix those rusty pipes!"

"Maybe I will!" she chuckled. It wasn't as if Harry was going to, he hadn't touched her in three weeks. She thought maybe he was just trying to wait until their honeymoon but she'd worn all of his favorite lingerie to bed and he hadn't looked twice a her. 

Liam couldn't help the smile on his face, things seem to be heading in the right direction as long as she smiled and relaxed.

___xx


	2. 2

'That wasn't supposed to happen,' Liam thought as he pulled out, rolled over and sighed when he untangled himself and laid down on the silk sheets. What was he thinking?!

"That...wasn't supposed...to happen," Leigh-Anne panted, echoing his thoughts and Liam could only nod his head; for Christ's sake she was engaged! Getting married in two weeks!

Albeit they both couldn't deny that what transpired in the early hours of the morning was probably some of the best sex either of them have had in a long while and it was way overdue....And it was way like, infidelity.

"Um.." Liam said now feeling uncomfortable laying next to Leigh-Anne. It's not that he didn't want to be there, he'd love to carry on a normal conversation but he needed to be somewhere else; he shouldn't be there in the first place. He shouldn't have done a lot of things a few hours ago and sleeping with her was the worst of all. "I need to go.." he muttered loud enough for her to hear. When he made his move to sit up she grabbed his arm, one of the biceps she had enjoyed admiring before things had gotten out of hand.

"No, don't leave," she pleaded softly. She didn't want to be alone in this big house, she was always alone here. Harry was always at work and they didn't have any children or pets, her only company was her friends who occasionally stopped by and reality tv shows, besides that, her only other human interactions were at work which she was starting to dread going to.

"No, I really should," Liam insisted, looking around her room for his boxers and just hoping the boys had left his basketball shorts and hoodie somewhere outside of the bedroom he was in.

The bedroom she shared with her fiancé.

"Look, if you're worried about my fiancé coming in and catching us I can tell you it's not going to happen. He's staying with a friend and won't be home until tomorrow evening," she told him bluntly. 

Liam shook his head and almost chuckled. He wasn't worried about her fiancé catching them, honestly he hadn't given that much thought when he had more pressing matters. 

"I've got to go across town. I need to leave," he repeated, gently shrugging off her hand and standing up.

Leigh-Anne would still blame the wine for everything that happened, even now when she could tell that she still wasn't completely sober because she was eyeing Liam's tight (and beautifully sculpted just like the rest of him) as$ and wanted to pinch it.

"I'm sorry for the.." For the amazing sex that she couldn't help but want more of as she watched him bend over to collect his briefs. The ache between her legs throbbing like it had for him coming back ten fold and the ache because of him made her clentch her legs together. Harry never left an ache before where Liam had definitely left his mark there tonight. Don't get her wrong, Harry was great in that area, but Liam was just...so much bigger.. I mean, better.

"Uh.." she said trying to remember what she'd been saying instead of oogling his toned back and some of the small, red scratches she had left on it. "The inconvenience."

Liam snorted softly to himself and looked over his shoulder at her from the corner of his eye. It really shouldn't have happened and he would blame himself if her marriage didn't work out because of this. He shouldn't have drank any of the wine she offered him after he was sure she needed to be cut off from it herself. He shouldn't have asked her if she was alright when she came back from taking a phone call from her fiancé. He definitely shouldn't have kissed her back when she threw herself at him when she was clearly drunk and upset. And after he did apologize for it, he shouldn't have stayed when she begged him too and offered to pay him extra, regardless if he did need the money or not.

Liam had no idea when he had stopped peeking at her from over his shoulder to full on staring at her, though she didn't seem to mind. Her hair was knotted, lips swollen, her eyes still glossy, smeared makeup and her chest that she hadn't moved to cover up, was exposed and her still hard nipples were trying to sway him back into bed with her. It couldn't get any worse if they went at it again, but he still needed to be somewhere.

"Yeah," he finally replied rubbing his neck and heading for the bedroom door.

Leigh-Anne followed him, still naked, and into her living room. She stood near the wall to partially cover herself as she watched him look for what she assumed was clothes. "If you need to, you could borrow some of..." Harry's. "They might be too small but that's better than nothing, right?"

She felt like she was talking to the wall when it took him a minute to answer. Liam cursed seeing that no, they didn't leave him anything to change into and they'd picked up his plumbers outfit but left his shoes; they'd even taken his phone. What if she was crazy and he needed to call for help? 'Probably Louis' idea to leave me like this,' he thought picturing his friends impish grin.

When Liam sighed throwing his head back and cover his eyes and muttered a low, "Please," Leigh-Anne quickly went to fetch him something to wear. Harry wouldn't even know it was gone and if he ever asked, she tell him she'd done some cleaning and since he hadn't been wearing it recently, she decided to donate it; he'd shrug it off as her normal behavior.

When she emerged again she had on clothes herself this time, sweatpants and a fitting top, and something for him to throw on. Shamelessly she watched him dress after he thanked her, he was still leaving and she would still be alone. Alone to think about how she just betrayed Harry and how much she loved how good it felt.

"Do you, uh, need a ride?" she offered. Assuming him and his stripper buddies had all come in one vehicle meant he was going to foot it or take a bus, and she didn't  think buses ran at this hour...and the closest bus stop was at least a mile away. 

Liam smirked to himself wondering why she just wouldn't leave him alone! It was bad enough that he'd slept with her and possibly ruined her marriage, but here she was offering him clothes and a ride. Liam wasn't sure if however she was marrying was lucky or not. 

"I'll walk," he announced, stepping into his shoes and adjusting his borrowed threads, the T-shirt was a bit tight because of his muscular shoulders, but everything else fit nicely.

"That'll take forever if you're going across town, I'll drive you there," she said seeing him card his hair in obvious frustration. 

"No offense Leigh-Anne, I'm sure you're a good person and all but please, just leave me be. I'm sorry if what we did is going to effect your relationship with this guy, really, I am. But please, just leave me alone," he said politely as possible, he just wanted to get home.

"Stop being so stubborn, Liam," she replied back, her eyes narrowing at him and his handsome face. "I'm trying to be nice and give you a ride instead of having you walk for two hours. I could've kicked you out when we were done but instead I offered to let you stay. I even offered you some clothes instead of just letting you figure out how you were going to travel in your underwear!" Leigh-Anne yelled. He was being ungrateful when all she had been trying to be was nice.

"You don't have to remind me of all of your charity work," he sneered, cutting his eyes at her. Her shirt was too tight, he could still see her nipples through it, and her sweats were riding lower than they should; it didn't look like she had on any panties underneath either.

"I'm not-" she screamed cutting herself off. This wasn't charity work, and as selfish as it was going to sound, she was tired of doing charity work. She just- "Can I just give you a damn ride, Liam? It's the least I can do.." she said softly, pinching the bridge of her nose before she had a nose bleed from her high blood pressure.

Liam was going to say no, he probably should've said no, but she looked sincere and so worn out. Smugly he thought, 'I did a pretty damn good job.'

"Let me drive," he demanded, his hand open and ready for her to drop her keys into his palm.

"But it's my damn car!" she yelled.

-x

"This is it?" she asked pulling up to the address he had given her and parking. After plenty of arguing over who would drive, she won after threatening not to pay him the extra she had promised if he stayed; yes, she remembered. 

Liam scoffed. "Don't sound so unimpressed." 

Leigh-Anne sucked her teeth at him and rolled her eyes. It was like he wanted to start an argument! "I was just saying because-"

"Because you live in a nice house and-"

"No!" She yelled. "Shut up! Stop assuming things!" 

Liam groaned internally, he wasn't assuming when it was a well known fact. He was just in her house and everything in it was luxurious, the chairs, carpet, doors and windows. Everything.

"I used to live a street over from here," she confessed quietly, though she wasn't sure why she was even telling him this, he's been nothing but difficult since they got out of bed. "This is actually the neighborhood I grew up in." 

Leigh-Anne leaned forward and put her forearms on the steeringwheel so she could rest her chin on them. It had been forever since she was even in this part of town, ever since she had met Harry things haven't been the same for her. Not that she was complaining about her new lavish lifestyle, but she couldn't help but miss not having everything she wanted. Everything she had now was costing her in other ways.

"Yeah, right," Liam said back, doubting that wholeheartedly and wishing she'd just pay him so he could leave. Leigh-Anne lived and behaved like a princess, there was no way she grew up anywhere around here.

"Fine, don't believe me. But if Mr. Jimmy with the glass eye is still around with his three legged dog, I'll spare you and not say that I told you so," she replied not being effected by his comment and instead, letting herself dive into the nostalgia of this place.

Liam was looking out the window and felt relieved when he spotted a familiar car and now felt bad for being so rude to Leigh-Anne because Mr. Jimmy was definitely still around and so was Leonard, his three legged companion. Liam wasn't a rude guy, but he'd been worried about not being home at a decent time and the excuse of sleeping with an engaged woman wouldn't fly with anyone.

Liam sighed and checked the time on her car, he needed to go to sleep...and shower. "Hey, I'm sorry," he apologized quietly.

Leigh-Anne hadn't heard him, she was still thinking about her childhood and how bittersweet it was and just how different her life was now. If she ever had the time, she would come back and stop by a few houses to see if some of her old neighbors still lived there and remembered her. 

"Hello?" Liam asked reaching out to touch her shoulder and gently shake her, he was waiting for her smart comment about how he should be sorry for assuming things because he was wrong.

"Huh?" she asked turning her head and looking at him. She hadn't noticed the tears that had somehow escaped but Liam did.

"Hey..." His features softened at her tears and he felt terrible now. "Are you-" Liam stopped himself from asking the same question that had gotten her to kiss him earlier. Leigh-Anne blinked twice and wiped her face, she didn't need to start crying with someone she didn't know in the car with her.  

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she said trying to convince herself of her words instead of Liam. She could care less of what Liam thought of her right now, surely it was along the lines of: bitchy, rich and ignorant, emotional and unfaithful sex goddess. "Why are you still in my car?"

"Because you still haven't paid me," he replied softly after a brief pause, curious as to what had triggered her tears. She hadn't even cried after they had sex at the thought of cheating on her fiancé and the consequences for it. 

"Oh.." she reached in the backseat for her purse and rummaged through it for her checkbook and a pen. "Do you take checks or..?"

Liam chuckled aloud and smiled, feeling like a total prostitute. "I'd prefer cash.."

Leigh-Anne shrugged and opened her wallet to retrieve a few bills. "How much?"

Liam couldn't help himself and for the first time in awhile, allowed himself to cracked up at that. He had never seen himself in a position such as this and he had needed a good laugh. If he didn't depresperately need the money he would tell her never mind and just forget it; It would cover his assuming and rudeness towards her.

"Why are you laughing?" Leigh-Anne asked, thinking that his laugh was actually a beautiful noise in her ears.

"No reason," he replied still chuckling but trying to calming himself. "Um..whatever you think it was worth, I guess." After it escaped his mouth he wanted to slap himself. He knew he fully pleasured her but that didn't mean she'd match the price he had set in his head. This was something he never did...

"Okay.." she said unsurely, grabbing a random amount. "Is this enough?" she wondered handing it to him.

Liam counted it and his eyes widened slightly in surprise, it was more than enough. It was loads more than he intially thought she would give him.

"Yeah, it's enough," he mumbled stuffing it into the pocket of the hoodie.

"Are you sure?" Leigh-Anne still felt like she was short a few dollars. Maybe Liam didn't fully realize how much she needed everything he had done to her body. Frankly speaking, if he would let her have him again in her backseat, she would do it.

"Positive." He could actually pay some bills off now.

"Okay, well..." She was waiting for him to leave. He had been in such a rush to get there and now that he was paid, he didn't have to sit in her car for another second longer. 

"Yeah, thanks.. Are you going to be alright to drive back?" he asked, it was a 25 minute drive just to get there and she'd yawned the entire drive and with her little crying episode she might not be emotionally stable enough to drive without doing something extreme. He couldn't have her getting into an accident on her way home weighing on his conscience.  

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she repeated like she had before. Liam looked her over once more, he still didn't believe her, but he wouldn't press the issue either.

"Okay.." He opened the passenger door and let the cool morning air enter the car, Leigh-Anne had turned away from him and faced forward once again and shivered.

He didn't understand what made him do it, but he called out her name to get her attention one last time and when she did, he kissed her. It wasn't anything special, no tongue, just a regular kiss; lips on lips.

Leigh-Anne was stunned. Stunned that he would bother kissing her after all of his rude comments and the small fact -that seemed to become increasingly insignificant- that she was still engaged. 

Her hand came up and cupped his unshaven face and her thumb rubbed it fondly. The notion of her wanting another steamy romp in her backseat with him seemed one step closer, and when he actually started to glide his slightly chapped lips along hers, it was even closer than that. Liam's strong hand went to the back of her head and he ran his hand up through her hair that he recalled being completely straight when he first arrived at her door, but was now curling from how much he had made her sweat during sex. Leigh-Anne moaned and prodded his lips for entry with her tongue and Liam pulled away making her groan in disappointment.

'I need to go. I need to go. I really want to stay, but I really need to go,' Liam thought taking his hand from her hair.

"Um.." He didn't have an explanation for kissing her, but he knew the growing erection in his shorts wouldn't let him leave if he stayed in her prescense for another minute. "Yeah, thanks. Bye," he said quickly, exiting the car and closing the door before she could ask him any questions.

She was so confused as she watched him climb the stairs to his apartment complex two at a time with no problem. When he arrived at his door, he glaned down at her car that hadn't pulled off and he sent her an awkward smile and wave before knocking on the door and having it opened seconds later. Leigh-Anne sighed and put her car into drive so she could go home a fully digest the passed five hours. And when she finally laid down to sleep, she couldn't help herself from smelling the covers and relishing in the scent Liam had left behind.

_x

"So you cheated," Perrie stated pointing at Leigh-Anne with the fork in her hand. "Two weeks before you're supposed to be getting married, married to Harry Styles, the millionaire...with a stripper," she added.

"Shh!" Leigh-Anne looked around the restaurant in case anyone overheard, Perrie knew she had to watch watch she said when they were out in public. 

"You were right, you probably should've called Jesy for this one," Perrie said cutting herself another piece of fish. "Aren't you going to eat?" Perrie asked looking at the salad sitting infront of her friend in distress.

"I can't," Leigh-Anne replied looking elsewhere.

"It's a salad," Perrie said dumbly. "I'm sure models can eat salads." Perrie rolled her eyes, she never did understand Leigh-Anne's eating habits.

"Of course, but I already ate before coming here," Leigh-Anne said biting her lip which meant she was lying.

Perrie knew it was a lie but wouldn't press her about it, her extreme diets have been even worse this past month than the years they've known each other. But with the wedding coming up Leigh-Anne had stressed how good she wanted to look for Harry in her wedding dress, he was having it designed by a close friend of his that currently worked out of Italy and was sparring no expense.

"Sure you did. So this Liam guy.." Perrie didn't quite get how they ended up in bed together, Leigh-Anne wasn't the type to cheat and passionately frowned. "Now correct me if I'm wrong, because I was too drunk yesterday, but he was the plumber, right? With the grey shirt, I think it was?"

Leigh-Anne nodded and hung her head in guilt. 

"Well he's a good looking guy, very sexy and all of that, but how and why?" Perrie asked. "When I told you to let him fix your rusty pipes, you know I was just kidding, right?"

"I know! And.. I..I don't know," Leigh-Anne said looking at her salad and the lettuce that was wilting from the warm air exposure. "It might've been the wine? Everything was fine up until Harry called. I know Liam's shirt was off and he was dancing, I was enjoying it...but then Harry called and.."

Leigh-Anne looked at her engagement ring and frowned, it was ostentatiously decorated in canary yellow diamonds. She remembered telling Harry so, she wanted a more modest ring and he said that it could still be bigger. 

"And?" her blonde friend prodded.

"And he said he wasn't coming home. Like, I knew that he probably wouldn't unless someone drove him, you know how he drinks, but I think it was all of his background noise that really set me off," Leigh-Anne said looking around the restaurant again. 

"Which was..?" 

"It was loud, and I could hear his friends yelling for him to get off the phone and enjoy himself, and that I would be fine. I agreed with them, I was alright and everyone at our party was alright too. But as he was hanging up I heard these giggles, female giggles, sucking noises, and his friends shouting about all of the as$ he was going to be missing out on when he got married. Then Harry rushed off the phone and didn't bother saying 'I love you' after I'd said it to him, so after that I just lost it," Leigh-Anne explained recalling what she remembered. 

"You think he cheated on you too?" Perrie wondered. 

"I don't know," Leigh-Anne whispered. "We wrote up a relationship contract like, two years ago, and it had parts about him cheating on me and how much he would have to pay and blah, blah, blah," she said dismissively waving her hand. 

"But it's not like he doesn't have the money for it," her friend pointed out.

"True...But I would think he would just know better not to. Like, I didn't even want to sign the stupid contract! It was his idea and I knew that I would never cheat on him so I didn't have anything to lose by signing it." 

"What would happen if you cheated on him? Do you have to pay him?" Perrie wondered. That would be pointless, even though Leigh-Anne did make her own money from modeling, Harry still had more.

"I don't know!" Leigh-Anne sighed putting her face in her hands. "I didn't read it!"

Perrie whistled lowly. "Well, you could always not tell him that it happened?" she suggested.

"That's not how you start a marriage, Perrie," Leigh-Anne replied in a mumble.

"Of course not, but what else are you going to do? If you call off the wedding, Harry would literally kill you. He's already spent all of this money on the dress, location, food, flowers, the whole shebang, and he's flying his family here from the UK." And Perrie was right. Harry would definitely kill her and pay the judge and jury off so he didn't face jail time.

"I don't know what I'm going to do, I don't think we should even get married anymore. Things aren't the way they were a few years ago, he's always working and we never see each other like we used to. And you know it's been weeks since we had sex. If it's one thing Harry always made time for, it was sex, and he hasn't been performing too well either. I just don't know, Perrie," Leigh-Anne sighed.

"What about Liam, though?"

"I already told you about Liam," Leigh-Anne replied tiredly, picking up her head and looking at her friend again.

"No, apart from the spectacular sex that Harry couldn't and most likely, will never give you. What about that goodbye kiss?" Psychologist or not, Perrie was having a hard time understanding what made Liam do that.

"It wasn't a goodbye kiss," she denied. "It was a.." (Was a: she didn't know what the f-ck it was, kiss.)

"Was it a 'see you later' kiss? Cause it seems like you had more fun with Liam in a few hours than with Harry in the past year."

"We had fun but then we started arguing," Leigh-Anne scoffed. "He was so assuming when it came to me and my life and I hated it."

"But was it spiteful arguing? Or just some misunderstanding between the two of you? Think about it from Liam's perspective for a second. He's a stripper who just slept with this millionaire's fiancé, a millionaire who could ruin his life. You said he lived in a rough neighboorhood, maybe he was just being defensive? You could easily turn this around on him, you were definitely drunk last night whereas he was sober."

Good point.

Perrie stopped eating and leaned forward across the table with a serious face. "Do you feel like Liam took advantage of you? It sounds like you were drunk and emotional, Liam could've and should've turned you down for those two reasons alone."

Leigh-Anne shook her head. "No. I kissed him first and he even apologized for kissing me back, he didn't take adavantage of me. And I.."

"You what?" the blonde pushed.

Leigh-Anne swallowed the lump in her dry throat. "I wanted to."

_x

"What happened to you last night?" Niall asked patting Liam on the back when he entered the place they worked, he was late and Liam was never late to work. 

"Nothing," Liam replied tiredly in a grumble. Luckily for him everything at home was okay when he got there. He could barely sleep before he had to wake up again and make breakfast.

"Right, and I'm not Irish," Niall said with a roll of his eyes. "What'd y'think of that bachelorette party?"

"It was nice, I guess," Liam said looking over his costume choices for the night and randomly picking one from the rack.

"'Nice.' You guess? You didn't see all of them gorgeous girls in there? Even that chicks mum looked good, though I think Louis' got a thing for her," Niall snickered. Louis complain the entire way home about the older woman not keeping her hands away from his d-ck but admitted he'd still give her a private dance if she asked.  
'She's pretty fine for a cougar,' he said as he was still digging out the dollars she made sure she stuffed all the way in his speedos.

"What about you and that one girl?" Liam asked rubbing his exposed skin with baby oil. "You guys disappeared after the first ten minutes."

"Oh." Niall coughed into his hand and felt his hot blush appearing in his cheeks. "She's a wild one."

"Seemed like it." Liam nodded, looking in the mirrow and styling his hair into it's usual do. 

"Got her number, we're gonna meet up in a few days," Niall said brushing his own hair unable to decide between wearing a fringe tonight or not. "Zayn looked like he was gonna have a threesome with the two he had, they seemed like they would've been okay with it too."

Liam shrugged. "Maybe."

"Hey, man." Niall put the brush down and rubbed Liam's shoulder. "What's wrong? It's not like you to giver short answers, that's more like Zayn... Still can't believe you picked him to be Zoe's godfather, we both know it should've been me. How is Zoe anyway?"

Liam bit his lip and sighed. "Zoe's fine..."

____xx

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unedited 
> 
> xx


	3. 3

"I want leather."

"For the tablecloths?" Leigh-Anne asked incredulously. "No, that's just stup-"

"It's genius!" Harry said interrupting her.

Leigh-Anne huffed and closed her eyes, no wonder all six their wedding planners had quit, Harry was impossible to work with. He shot down all of her opinions without a second thought.

"We still have to fly to Italy to pick up the dress, Cher said it's ready. I hope you haven't gained any weight since she took your measurements. I mean, we could always do some last minute liposuction, I'm going to have your bum augmented in a week anyways. I want-"

"Wait," Leigh-Anne said loudly. What made him think he could just tell her what he was going to have done to her body? Didn't he know she needed to consent -which she wasn't going to give- before making these type of ridiculous decisions? "When were you going to tell me that you wanted to get my butt augmented?" She stood up and looked down and over her shoulder at her butt. She walked to the closet mirror to look at it more closely, turning around, posing and bending over to get different angles. "There's nothing wrong with it," she stated.

"There isn't," Harry agreed. "But it could always look better."

Leigh-Anne's jaw dropped at that. "I'm not getting an augmentation."

"Yes, you are. I already have the appointment scheduled for next week Tuesday," Harry replied simply.

"No, I'm not getting it period. It's big enough and no agency is going to want a huge ass walking down the runway," she argued. "And you know how I feel about surgery, I'm not doing it."

"Leigh, every agency is going to want your huge arse, when you get it done, walking down the runway," Harry chuckled out. "They have no reason not to want Mrs. Styles modeling their clothes...or lack of."

Leigh-Anne flinched when she heard him say 'Mrs. Styles,' she hadn't had the chance to really talk to him about that.

"Um, I was wondering about that.." she said having a seat back on he couch beside him as he flipped through a book of designer tuxedos for himself. It was sad that he'd spent more time deciding on what he would wear compared to her and what she would wear.

"About what? Oh, and my family will be here two days before the wedding," he added as an afterthought.

Leigh-Anne groaned to herself. She couldn't stand his mother and the feeling was 100% mutual. His mother frowned upon her work and regarded it as, 'Merely taking pictures in skimpy clothing.' His sister however, was her saving grace and always trying to be the peacekeeper (or referee) between them.

"About your last name. I was thinking about keeping mine? I've worked hard and now everyone recognizes me by it. 'Leigh-Anne Styles' sounds great, but I really want to keep Pinnock," she said waiting for him to blow up on her. "Or maybe a hyphen? Pinnock-Styles doesn't sound too bad, right?"

Actually, it sounds like some designer clothing line.

Harry mulled it over. He'd been set on having her take his name but she brought up a good point. "You're right, you should keep it. 'Pinnock' is a brand now just like 'Styles,' is. Well, it's not as big, but it'll do... Finally, some contribution to this marriage!" Harry said tiredly.

Did he just..? Leigh-Anne couldn't even finish that thought. Everytime she tried adding her two cents he would shut her out and take over the entire thing. Like with the tablecloths. Who the hell has leather tablecloths for their wedding? Why couldn't they just have normal tablecloths? Or with the butt augmentation idea. Who said she wanted a bigger butt? (Not a soul.) Because she didn't. And he spoke as if their marriage was some business merger instead of the joining of two peoples hearts and souls. What happened to their love? Or did that not matter anymore? ...Was it even there to begin with? Or was it just her?

"I'm going to lay down," she mumbled. She was exhausted from work, scrubbing herself raw from her sins and making sure she cleaned their bedroom sheets before Harry came home today.

"Why? We've just started," Harry replied.

"I uh..I don't feel good," she lied, coughing convincingly into her hand.

"You're sick?" he asked, his eyes softening as they looked her over.

"Yeah, I think I caught it from opening and closing the door last night to let everyone in and out," she said continuing her lie. Harry liked to keep their house sweltering whereas she liked the house moderately warm if not more on the cooler side. She would adjust the temperature while he was away but always made sure to turn it back to 'normal' an hour before he got home, otherwise he'd go ballistic.

"Should I take you to the doctors? I don't want you to get worse," he replied standing up to envelop her in a hug.

"No, I'll be alright," she murmured into his neck. This was the Harry she loved, the concerned one who actually could put things on hold for her. "I just need some rest, that's all."

"Are you sure?" he wondered.

"I'm sure." She nodded squeezing him harder, not wanting him to let her go. If she could have things her way, they would lay in bed together all day while she pretended to be sick and he pampered her.

"If you say so.." Harry kissed her forehead and unwrapped his arms from her waist. "I'll wake you up in an hour to check on you, alright?"

"Alright," she said watching him turn around and head back towards their couch. "Harry?"

She was going to say 'I love you,' that is, before she saw the huge hickey he was trying to hide beneath the collar of his dress shirt.

"Yeah, Leigh? What is it? Did you change your mind about going to the doctors?" he asked. "I really can't have you ill on the wedding day," he added, becoming the person she didn't love once again. "It'll show in the pictures."

"Um... no." She shook her head in denial. That was a bruise. A big bruise from when one of his friend's put him in a headlock last night. "It's nothing, just...can you check on me in two hours? I'm really tired."

Harry smiled at her and nodded. "Sure thing."

_x

"You never did tell me why you came home so late," she asked Liam, trying to keep up with his long strides and fast pace.

"I was working, rememeber?" he asked, slowing down and letting her catch up to walk beside him.

"Mmhm, I remember," she replied. "But I don't remember you ever coming in that late from work before. Zoe kept asking about you before she went to sleep, I'm not sure how she can stay up that late waiting for you to come home anyways."

"Dani, please, can we not talk about it?" Liam snapped, sharply turning the corner and seeing their destination ahead.

'Dani' held her hands up in defense. "She's my goddaughter, Liam, I think I have a right to know where you were instead of being there with her. What if something would've happened to her after the babysitter had left? What if I hadn't come by after the sitter called me like 50 times because you weren't answering and there was a fire or something?"

She was so protective of Zoe and she was protective of him too, that's why he asked her to be Zoe's godmother. It was the weirdest thing asking her though. They started off as friends, and then they had dated for awhile on and off, but it just never felt the way they thought it should. They kept in contact and deciding that being friends was for the best. So after Zoe was born and Sophia, her mother, had disappeared right after giving birth to her, Liam didn't know what to do. He was young, she was his first child, and he hadn't a clue on how to raise one or even change a diaper. And Zoe was a girl! (Obviously.) He didn't know how to do braids or twists for her hair, she would be forced to wear a ponytail forever or until she learned to do it herself. So the day he was able to leave the hospital with Zoe he gave Danielle a call and she came right over.

Making her Zoe's godmother seemed like the right thing to do and it was probably one of the best decisions he's made since Zoe got here. Danielle adored his little girl and spoiled her constantly, she'd even taken her to work and had 'girls only' sleepovers at her place when he knew he wouldn't be coming home. Liam was forever indebted to her and owed her everything.

"I try not to think of things like that, Dani," he huffed. "It was a dumb mistake, I should've been home before the babysitter even left. I get it." He doubted he could get her to watch Zoe again after that, now he had to find yet another babysitter to work so late for so little. The only reason this one stayed so long was because she had a huge crush on him and loved seeing him come home a little sweaty. (She'd even gone as far as accidentally sending him suggestive selfies...a large pickle in her mouth being one of them.)

"Aside from it being a mistake, it's very... different," Danielle said cautiously. "It's not something you do...ever. Like, you could've called and told me you'd be late coming in, but you didn't. I was asleep when Alexa kept calling me and when I answered I thought Zoe had hit her head and was being rushed to the hospital or something, not because you were late coming home and wasn't answering her calls."

Liam only sighed and grumbled that he would be right back. He entered the place and was greeted by an excited scream that he knew all too well.

"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!" Zoe screamed running up to him and jumping into his arms, her hair definitely slapping him in the face. Effortlessly he lifted her up and twirling around with her and she giggled. "Daddy, I missed you!" she said kissing his cheek when he put her on his hip to sign her out.

"I missed you too, Zoe-oe-oe!"

"Ice, ice, ice!" she cheered. Dani had gotten her addicted to Bring It On and now Dani was teaching her how to do the cheers.

Liam smiled, kissed her cheek back and pulled on the long fishtail braid Dani had put in her hair this morning.

The woman behind be desk cleared her throat so she wouldn't swoon over him the way she did everyday he came to pick up his daughter. "Mr. Payne, we need your payment by next week or we'll be unable to-"

"I have it right here," he said pulling it from his pocket and laying it on the counter.

"Ooh, Daddy's got money," Zoe laughed before covering her mouth to trap in the giggles.

Liam chuckled along dryly, he had money for now thanks to the affair he had with an engaged woman. An engaged woman that he shouldn't have kissed one last time because she seemed to haunt his dreams afterwards.

"Thank you Mr. Payne," she said with a smile as she counted it. "You two have a nice day. See you tomorrow, Zoe!"

"Goodbye Ms. Susie!" Zoe waved, Liam smiled and said his goodbyes as well and left.

"Auntie Dani is here," he singsonged happily for his daughter.

Zoe gasped with wide eyes. "Is she at home?"

"Nope." He grinned at how excited she always seemed about little things. "She's riiiight..."

"Here!" Dani yelled jumping from behind the wall.

Zoe screamed and clapped her hands. "Auntie Dani! I thought you had to work today?"

Danielle shrugged with a perfect smile on her lips. "I told them I was sick and needed my niece to make me feel better."

"Me?" Zoe wondered.

"Yes, you!" Danielle scooped Zoe from Liam's arms with little protest and held one of her hands while Liam held the other. To an outsider they looked like the perfect family, mom, dad, and daughter, going for a walk while holding hands and swinging them. Too bad only one of them thought it could actually be a reality one day while the other disagreed.

"Daddy, why didn't you take care of Auntie Dani today if she's sick?" his daughter asked, upset that he wouldn't take care of her Aunt.

"Because Daddy's magic medicine doesn't work on her, she's evil," he replied and laughed when Danielle punched him in the shoulder over Zoe's head.

"Hey! Auntie Dani isn't evil, she's the nicest and goodest person ever!" Zoe said passionately, yanking on Liam's arm to get his attention for saying something so mean and giving him the same look he gave her when she knows she was being bad.

"Goodest isn't a word, Zoe," Danielle corrected.

"Oh...what about bestest? Is bestest a word? Cause you're the bestest Auntie ever!" she asked smiling up at her.

"Nope, that's not a word either." Danielle chuckled and knew what was about to ensue for the rest of their journey back to Liam's place.

"What about-"

_x

"How are you feeling?" Harry asked smiling down at Leigh-Anne when she woke up. It scared the shit out of her seeing him up so close.

"I'm um... feeling a little better. Thanks for asking," she said quietly, noticing that he had changed clothes during the time that she was unconscious and that the bruise she had seen earlier was very much still present on his neck.

Harry rubbed her leg. "Of course, Babe. Are you hungry? I was thinking about cooking us something instead of going out tonight. The paps have been relentless these days since the wedding's coming up, haven't they?"

Leigh-Anne's heart stopped and her blood ran cold. She hadn't even thought about the paparazzi catching her and Liam together. It would look so incriminating online or on TV with him showing up last night -with his three friends- and then leaving hours after they left with her, in Harry's clothes. And if they went as far as following her as she dropped off Liam, then she was positive they caught that last kiss on camera. That must be why Harry was all up in her face smiling like a psychotic serial killer. He'd already seen the pictures or gotten a call from their publicist about her affair and was plotting her untimely death after their wedding.

Yes, they would still get married after this scandal broke and then he'd kill her off. (Pssh, like Harry would actually kill her before the wedding of the millennia.) Their wedding had generated so much buzz and he was loving every second of it, and knowing him, he'd do it on their honeymoon and say she'd tragically fallen to her death off a cliff...the one he'd push her off of with no witnesses around. Or that she had come down with some mysterious, fatal, and completely made up disease, and he couldn't get her the proper medical care before it was too late.

(She needed to make peace with everyone in her life and say goodbye in the next few days.)

"Are you positive you don't want to see a doctor?" he asked again. "I've been waiting for an answer and you completely zoned out." Harry raised his hand to her forehead to check for a fever. "I could always bring the doctor here for you instead.."

"No." It would be the same doctor that would be in cahoots with him when he killed her and declaring her dead. "I'm fine, it's just a little common cold," she said waving it off. "I'm gonna be fine in a few days, just watch."

Leigh-Anne smiled and prayed that he didn't see right through it and called her bluff.

Harry's eyes raked over her face before trailing down the silhouette of her body that the covers casted. "You do realize that you're the most beautiful woman in the world, right?" he asked when his eyes met hers again.

"No," she peeped out. She only considered herself highly attractive, as in, attractive enough to do modeling.

Regardless of what the media said about her beauty, she always tried to be modest and humble about it, just talking about her looks made her uncomfortable. Harry, however, would never let her forget how beautiful she was and would tell everyone, whenever her name came up, that it should be written into law or made into a holiday that celebrated her. No, it wasn't a bad thing that he proclaimed her to be the most beautiful woman in the world -he was her fiancé and soon to be husband, he should be saying things like that- it was the fact that her beauty, her image, her name brand, was all he ever seemed to talk about with people.

"Well, you should. And on the day of our wedding, you'll be the most stunning bride there ever was," Harry whispered leaning in to kiss her on the lips.

And ruefully, she let him.

His lips felt nothing like Liam's. Liam's lips made her crave for another kiss and hopefully pursue doing some other things that involved using their lips on each other. Harry's, though they were very soft, maybe even softer than hers, lacked passion while they worked. In spite of all of that, she still kissed him back.

Harry made a grunting sound before slowly climbing on her body to mount her. His hands found themselves on her hips and rubbing her thighs, his lips were now attached to her neck, nipping softly at all of the skin it could find.

Leigh-Anne was disgusted with herself. Not even 24 hours ago she was in the very same bed with another man, another man she didn't know, who was a stripper, and lived near her old house. And now here she was, reenacting her sinful affair with her fiancé. Gently she tried pushing him off from her, Harry didn't handle rejection of any kind very well.

Ignoring her, Harry bit her neck harder and let one of his hands slip down between her legs.

"H-Harry, no," she said quietly. Still tenderly trying to push him from her.

"Leigh, it's been weeks," he mumbled before licking her neck and then sucking, he was determine to leave a bruise.

"I know but," -she used more force this time to get him to stop- "I, um..I wanna wait until our honeymoon."

It was the best thing she could come up with without saying a flat out "No," or confessing to having an affair.

Harry sighed and leaned back to see her. "I want us to have this because we're going to be busy the next few days, Leigh, and... I want us to get a head start on having a baby."

Leigh-Anne held her breath and watched Harry begin to smile sheepishly at her, the tiniest of blushes across his cheeks, he was showing a glimspse of the Harry she longed for him to be once again.

A baby... A baby! He wanted to have a baby with her and officially become a family, she couldn't ask for more. She'd wanted a baby years ago but because of her modeling, she (mostly Harry) thought it would be best for them to wait. They were still young and she was still making a name for herself as an up-and-coming model in the industry and Harry wasn't finished working his magic.

"Now? You want to have a baby, now?" she asked. She was overjoyed and flabbergasted.

Still grinning, though the blush had started to fade, Harry nodded. "Well, in nine months, yeah. Leigh, I think it's time. We've been together for seven years now, we should've been married after three, and I'm sorry I made you wait so long."

"Harry, it's-" After those first three years she couldn't see herself being with another other than Harry, after the next three she wasn't sure they'd ever walk down the aisle. And after last year she was ready to call it quits with their relationship altogether, but then he finally proposed and ignited some hope for them again. "I want us to have a family too, but-"

"But what?" Harry's brow pinched together in confusion, she had nagged him about it years ago and now she had doubts? "I thought you wanted to have a baby?"

"I do!" Leigh-Anne sighed and looked down into her lap to avoid his eyes. "But I'll be 30 in two years and by then my modeling career will be pretty much over with... can't we just wait two or more years until then?"

"Well.." Harry tiredly rubbed his neck. "Two years is kind of a long time.."

"No," she disagreed giving him a look. It was her damn body, if she didn't want a baby right now she had a right to tell him no. "Seven years is a long time."

Harry held up his hands defensively. "Okay, okay. Yes, you're absolutely right, seven years is a long time. So...let's talk about having a baby after the wedding, but this one is just for fun?"

Her mind screamed 'no!' immediately. The hand Harry had placed back on her inner thigh was slowly creeping up and his other reached for their stash of condoms, making good on his part about not getting her pregnant. She huffed, feeling the heat of arousal rising up and automatically she spread her legs to allow more access for his hand.

"Alright, but you have to work me up to it. I'm not really in the mood," she lied, leaning back until her head landed on the pillows.

Harry smiled and called her out on it. "Don't lie. It's been weeks so I know you're in the mood, Babe."

She shuddered. He knew she loved it when he called her 'Babe.' Leigh-Anne closed her eyes and let Harry take it from there...and the thought that Liam hadn't used a condom didn't hit her until after Harry had thrown his used one away.

_x

"Jes, he's definitely gonna murder me!" Leigh-Anne said into her phone.

Harry had stayed for awhile, they cuddled, they talked more about their upcoming nuptials and Harry had been gracious enough to give her a hint about where he had planned for the two of them to go for their honeymoon. It was time well spent, Harry wasn't being too ridiculous with his wedding demands and actually let her change around a few of his ideas; unfortunately, the leather tableclothes wasn't one of them. He had to leave when he got an emergency phone call. Harry had promised that he wouldn't be gone very long and ordered her to relax.

"He isn't, Leigh," Jesy scoffed. There would be hell to pay if Harry hurt Leigh-Anne. "Just because he said it was going to be hot and there would be water, doesn't mean he's going to kill you."

"No! What if Liam got me pregnant? I don't remember him using a condom or seeing one when I cleaned up the room. Jes, I don't wanna die. I don't wanna be pregnant with a rude stripper's baby. I don't want to be pregnant at all. I don't want to get marri-" Whoa there. She stopped herself and took a deep breath.

Jesy caught it, though. "Have you told Harry that you didn't want to get married?"

"Jes, you know I want to get married," Leigh-Anne sighed.

"Alright, let me try a different question. Why don't you want to marry Harry anymore? I know you remember the conversation we had about this," Jesy stated. Even if she was going to be miserable, atleast she'd be wealthy.

"Yeah, but I just can't see myself being with him forever if he's going to keep blowing hot and cold air all the time. One minute I can't stand him, then suddenly he's the guy I fell in love with, and then I can't stand him again!" she complained. "Especially lately. Today he said that he was going to get my butt augmented!"

"Your ass is fine."

"That's what I told him, and he still thinks it could look better. He's being ridiculous!"

"Wait, how many years have you guys been together? I know you guys had a break in year four.." Jesy wondered.

"Seven. Seven long years," she sighed.

"Then that explains it..."

"What explains what, Jesy? Cause it looks like I'm going to die soon."

Jesy rolled her eyes on her side of the phone and held up a finger to the person trying to speak to her. "Give me a minute," she told them politely. "Leigh, calm down, how many times do I have to tell you that he's not going to kill you? You're just a victim to the seven year itch, it's alright."

"How can I calm down when my death is a handful of days away?!" she yelled. "And I don't believe in the seven year itch, we're not even married yet."

"You don't have to be married to be a victim of it. It's seven years of commitment either way and seven years of the same person and their quirks and bullshit," Jesy said. "That's why I freelance romance."

"Is that your fancy way of saying that you have a black book, Jes? Cause it's sounds terrible.." Leigh-Anne gave a dry chuckle. "I was afraid to even go in the room you and the fireman went into."

"Oh, him.." Jesy replied, uninterested. "The room is fine, nothing happened. Niall and I thought we'd spare you the trouble and meet up later."

"Well atleast somebody is getting something good out of the strippers," Leigh-Anne muttered.

"Don't say that, you got some good dick out of it. I bet Liam flashed through your mind when Harry hit it from the back," Jesy snickered. "Plus I heard from Perrie that Jade and the cop really hit it off, Perrie's really sour about it too... Hey! I said give me a damn minute!" she yelled over her shoulder.

"Who are you talking to?" Leigh-Anne asked. "And Jade? Really?" Actually, that didn't surprise her. Jade was the one who ordered the strippers and that officer looked ready to take her home with him and keep her there...Jade probably would've liked that, too.

"These people at work! They see that I'm busy!" Jesy snapped. "They can stop calling me, I'm handling it. I can't fix everyone's shit overnight!" Jesy loved being a lawyer, but her clients were too pushy, though Jesy always won when she threatened to drop their case.

"Tell me how you still have a job?" Jesy was so mean to her clients.

"Simple. They need me," Jesy looked at the papers on her desk and shook her head. "Okay, I'm going to look over your contract and see if I can find something that can fix this mess for you. I'll call if I find anything, meanwhile, go get a pregnancy test. It'll be too soon to tell now but in a few days you should take it."

Leigh-Anne sighed. How was she going to discretely get a pregnancy test? "Yeah, alright...thanks, Jes."

"No problem, Leigh. Don't stress, we'll figure it out. Love you," Jesy replied.

"Love you too.."

"Okay, I'll- Hey! What did I fucking say a minute ago?" Jesy shouted. "I swear my assistant is a damn idiot, I'm firing him," she told Leigh-Anne. "Okay, I'll talk to you later. Love you. Bye."

Jesy hung up and Leigh-Anne stared up at the ceiling after she put her phone down, then she laid her hand on her stomach. She couldn't possibly be pregnant. She was engaged and the baby wasn't her fiancés. The father most likely wouldn't want anything to do with her or their child. Although an abortion would make things easier, she was pro life and wouldn't be able to live with herself if she went through with it.

"Why?" Why did she do it? Why didn't she have some more self control? Why'd she throw herself at Liam that way? Why didn't he just tell her no and get the hell out of there before it was late? Why didn't she just shut down her bacheorlette party after her phone call with Harry? And if Harry really did cheat on her at his bachelor party, what was she going to do?

She could see Jesy saying, "Yeah, what are you gonna do, Bitch?" as she reached for a metal baseball bat and practiced her swing.

She removed her hand and picked up her phone once again. She needed to make a phone call to a friend...and her publicist.


	4. 4

"And you're sure about that?" Leigh-Anne asked into the phone, biting her lavender colored nails before examining them with a frown. Harry would flip shit if he saw her biting them and demand that she get her nails done immediately.

"No one's come forward with allegations or trying to sell any pictures, if there are any, to the media," her publicist replied professionally. "But for the record, explain the situation to me once more so I can understand why the hell you thought driving home a stripper you cheated on your million dollar fiancé with, was worth your relationship and reputation?" he reprimanded. "Do you know how bad it's going to look if someone did manage to get a picture of the two of you? Forget the kiss, just you being around someone else at that time will start rumors. That good girl image will be tarnished and you'll be branded as a skanky model like the rest of them! Is that what you want?"

"No.."

"And, what's his name? Leeroy?"

"Liam," she corrected softly.

"Liam. Have you talked to him?"

"No," she denied. "I dropped him off and I haven't seen or talked to him since. It's not like I have his number, Todd, I'm not going to call him and talk about the weather..."

"Good, so if you had to judge from your limited time with this Liam guy, do you think he would sell the story of your affair?" Todd wondered, humming to himself. "If he was desperate enough to sleep with you for money he could choose to sell with story for a few dollars as well. There's always money in a scandal."

'Desperate enough to sleep with her?' 'A few dollars?' What was she, some Quasimodo that could only sleep with guys if she paid them? No. She was Leigh-Anne Pinnock! America's modeling sweetheart. Frequent guest judge on Dancing With The Stars, American Idol and America's Next Top Model, on the cover of Sports Illustrated's highest grossing magazine ever, the new face for CoverGirl, former Victoria's Secret Angel and everyone's new favorite model. (Move over, Chrissy Teigen, you've been replaced.) She worked her ass off for all of it and she had risked all of that for a night of sin... Liam wouldn't get a few dollars, he would get thousands...and probably a reality show if he played his cards right.

"No, Liam wouldn't do that. I think he feels bad enough about it, I don't think he would come forward. The last thing he would want is to be known as the stripper who ruined Harry Styles' wedding. If it came down to it we could just pay him to keep his mouth closed."

Todd hummed again and nodded to himself, that was probably their safest bet. "That's a relief. And just to be on the safe side, I think you should make a public appearance with Harry. Go on a date somewhere and do a lot of touching. Go overboard on the PDA."

"Harry doesn't want that. He wants us to be low-key for the next few days.." Atleast that's what he told her when he had came back from his emergency meeting.

Todd scoffed at her words because she just had to be kidding. "And when has Harry done anything low-key?"

"Well, when uh.." She paused and actually had to ponder that. Harry had an ego the size of Asia, he was very showy, obnoxiously so, and he knew it too. Harry and low-key, or anything remotely modest didn't work and wouldn't work.

"Like when the two of you first started dating, he made a spectical of that," Todd said in remembrance.

That was annoying.

Instead of trying to hide the fact that they were now a couple he embraced it, flaunted it, and anywhere there was a phone or camera, he felt like it was the perfect photo op for them to be captured. The majority of their first dates, kisses and suggestive cuddles were in public and on the Internet within the hour. Todd tried to do damage control but "Hurricane Harry" couldn't be stopped. Harry just didn't care! She was glad that he was proud enough to tell the world that they were together, but couldn't he do it in a more subtle way? The calls she got from her mother about him palming her ass with both hands and looking like he wanted to stand and deliver were conversations she never wanted to relive.

"Or when he bought you that huge necklace that he made you wear for like, two weeks straight whenever you two were out in public and that time he convinced them to let you wear it down the runway."

Now that was a cringeworthy moment.

The photographers were more enthralled with her necklace than the $40,000 gowns that she was there to model, the majority of the pictures of her were of her from the neck up. And if they were lucky enough they saw a glimpse of the top of the gown. She was in so much shit with the designers that she promised to wear them to other events that she was invited to, the Grammy's, Oscars, Emmys, NAACP any and everything. Even at the BET, MTV and VMA's when she was asked to name the nominees and present them with the award. Til this day some of those designers were still holding a grudge. She had her people call their people so she could have something to wear for red carpets that she was attending as Harry's date of course and they told her no... That was all Harry's fault.

"I know you remember when the two of you went on break for a month and he was on every late night TV show, and in every interview, crying to the cameras about how much he missed you and wanted you back."

And that was embarrassing.

He made her look like some cold hearted monster turning a deaf ear to his cries when he was pouring his heart out to her for the world to see. She had refused to make a statement on his behavior because he was simply being melodramatic. He was the one who initiated their break. She should've been the one getting an hour long documentary about their relationship, not him. He had broke her heart and during that time, she wasn't sure they were even going to get back together. Their relationship was on the rocks and he knew it. And being the man that he, Harry Styles, is, he choose to capitalize on the opportunity. But thankfully, he stopped being theatrical and he called her saying that they should get back together. He missed her. He promised to try harder, put more effort into their relationship, and he said he loved her...And she said yes.

"Let's not forget the matter of your engagement.." Todd added clicking his tongue.

Leigh-Anne didn't know how Harry and a certain Kendall Jenner -a model that Leigh-Anne simply had to scoff at because if it weren't for her family's connections she would never have made it down the runway, Tyra said so herself- knew each other, but they did.

She thought that Harry was taking her on a romantic date, it had started off as so, then after a two minute phone call they were at a doorstep and then they were greeted by Kendall and a flock of cameras. Leigh-Anne stayed quiet, only speaking when spoken to or when Kendall was introducing her to the other occupants of their home. She felt welcomed, everyone was all smiles and nice...too nice. But none of that mattered when Harry had gotten down on one knee and suddenly proposed in front of the Kardashian-Jenner clan and their camera crew.

How could she say no?

That would not only embarrass Harry infront of his err.. acquaintances, but the world.

She didn't want to say no.

Leigh-Anne had been with him for six years. Saying no to his proposal would be like saying no to a lifetime achievement award. She had worked too damn hard to keep their relationship intact.

And obviously she said yes.

"Harry is anything but low-key," he told her and sighed. "Is there anything else I should look out for?"

Nervously she bit her lip. "I don't know for sure but...but I think Harry might have cheated on me too..."

Todd snorted and rolled his eyes. "You think?"

Leigh-Anne's forehead creased together in confusion. "Yeah, I think... Is there something I should know, Todd?"

"Nope," he replied flippantly. "If you don't know then I'm not going to be the one to tell you."

"You're supposed to tell me everything, you're my publicist," she said lowly. She would never have guessed that Todd would ever keep secrets from her. He wasn't just her publicist, he was also her friend. "If he is, or has, I need to know. You're aware of our contract and any information about his infidelity would actually help this situation."

"I'll look into it, Leigh-Anne," Todd replied dutifully but with an attitude. He liked Leigh-Anne, he really did. He loved it when they had their little outings together that consisted of gossip and shopping, but the girl was dense when it came to obvious matters. "Anything else before I start snooping into your fiancés business?"

Her hand fell to her stomach and she sighed. "I'm waiting for my friend to get here with the tests but...there's a possibility that I might be pregnant?"

"You don't sound very sure. Did he, or didn't he, wear protection? Last I checked Harry didn't want you on birth control," Todd said with a click of his tongue.

She bit the inside of her cheek before answering. "He didn't. I was too drunk and forgot to tell him where they were." Granted Liam probably couldn't fit Harry's size, they would be too small.

"Splendid!" Todd exclaimed tepidly and sarcastically. "Just splendid."

_x

He took a moment to stop ravishing her neck to speak. (He would finish sucking bruises onto it in a second though.)

"We've got to stop meeting like this," he whispered into the crook of her neck. Teeth scraping her skin and teasing until they reached her earlobe and gave a teasing tug on it. Her eyes fluttered and she broke out in a giggle, her hands were buried in his hair that was unbelievably soft and thick.

"Then stop calling me so we can meet up."

His lips left a trail from her ear back to her mouth and he pulled on her bottom lip before sucking it into his own, his tongue still tasted her strawberry lipgloss. He could've sworn he had licked it all off five minutes ago.

"Can't. Being with you is my new favorite pastime," he admitted, chuckling when she clawed at his clothed back.

"Considering how much time we spend together I would hope so," she said sliding her nimble hands up the sweater he wore.

"Seriously, Jade," he replied pulling away from her and taking her hands out of his sweater. "I didn't come over for this."

The disbelieving look that she gave him left him back tracking.

"Okay, yeah, I did," he confessed and Jade 'humphd' triumphantly, quirking her lips slightly. She knew she wasn't the only one that craved what the other so graciously put out. "I had to talk to you about something."

She flipped her hair and pulled it back from her face. "Now? It can't wait until after we're finished?" She was ready to go, full steam ahead, right now.

"If I wait I'll forget after I get your panties off," he said truthfully. She made his mind go blank to the point where the only thoughts were to make sure she got hers before he got his. That's all. "It's about your friend. The one you hired me and my friends for?"

She cocked her head slighty to the left. What did her engaged best friend have to do with the two of them getting it on? Cause it looked like Leigh-Anne was being a cock-block and she wasn't even present. "Leigh-Anne? What about her?"

"You probably already know but she slept with my one friend, Liam, the one that danced for her.."

Jade's mouth was agape in surprise because no, she didn't already know and this was news to her.

"Alright, " Zayn said carefully, "-maybe you didn't know..But they did, yeah. After the party when everyone had left.."

Besides her being aroused by Zayn to the point of no return and drunk, she didn't notice that Liam hadn't departed with his crew. She was too busy making sure she got Zayn's number and fantasizing about him handcuffing her hands to her feet. (I'll let you guys sit on that one.)

"Okay.." That wasn't what where she thought this conversation was going to go. She didn't want to find out from her stripper-boytoy that her best friend had an affair with one of his stripper pals. That was something Leigh-Anne should've told her herself, or atleast something she should've heard secondhand from either Perrie or Jesy, surely she told them. She was engaged for crying out loud! What was she doing having an affair?!

"And what exactly do we have to talk about?" She needed to talk to Leigh-Anne about this, not her sex-toy.

Zayn chewed his lip in thought. He would much rather be inbetween Jade's smooth legs jack hammering away at her sex until she cried out that she couldn't take it anymore because quite frankly, she was afraid that her orgasm would be so intense that she wouldn't come back from subspace... Unfortunately, all trips to euphoria were being delaying seeing how Zayn gave his word to Liam that he would do this for him.

"How is she?" he asked nervously, scratching the back of his head and looking away from her. "Liam said he wanted to know if she was alright, y'know, since she uh...with the whole being engaged thing," he said using his hands for help.

"I don't know, I haven't talked to her since the party.." There was only work and Zayn the past few days. Jade hadn't thought twice about calling Leigh-Anne because she knew she would be busier than most brides with Harry as her soon-to-be spouse.

"Oh.. Well I guess that was pointless then.." And in true male fashion, Zayn leaned in to continue where he had left off, or atleast he would've if Jade hadn't stopped him.

"Why?"

"Why what?" Now he was slightly irritated. He had gotten his answer and now he wanted to finish what he started. If he hadn't remembered to be a good friend, he would've had her bra off by now, maybe even those mind numbing panties too.

"Why does he want to know how she is?" she clarified. "He shouldn't care after he ruined her relationship."

Zayn got defensive immediately at her accusations of Liam of being some sort of home-wrecker. "It takes two to have an affair, Jade. Your friend isn't innocent. And from what Liam told me, she came onto him first."

"Leigh-Anne wouldn't do that! She's-"

"Engaged. I know," he said dryly. "But she did."

Jade's eye twitched in annoyance. She knew her friend and Leigh-Anne would never. Leigh-Anne lived, breathed and preached monogamy. Leigh-Anne? Unfaithful? It was the most obsured thing she had heard all year, so how dare he accuse her best friend of having an affair?

"I'm telling you she didn't," she said finally, arms crossed over her chest as she turned her body away from his.

His caramel eyes squinted at her statement. Liam had no reason to lie about it, Zayn had seen her fiancés clothes with his own two eyes when he visited him yesterday and checked on his goddaughter. What other explanation would Liam give him for having such items in his pocession? Other than the truth?

"And I'm telling you she did," he insisted.

"No, she didn't! Leigh-Anne did not have an affair with a stripper!" she yelled, huffing with anger and still refusing to turn back to him.

It was the way she spat out the word "stripper" that personally offended him. Had she forgotten that he too, was a stripper? Or were there levels to the stripping business that he didn't know about? It didn't matter, it still put an ache in his chest when she said it and Zayn wouldn't stand for it. He wouldn't sit there and put up with her bashing his best friend and painting him to be the bad guy. No matter how good she fucked -because boy, could she- he wouldn't permit another slanderous word uttered from her perfect lips about his friend. Liam was a damn good man, person, and father, and he didn't deserve to have anyone talk badly about him.

So he chuckled darkly to himself and tenderly grabbed her chin with his slighty calloused hands and tried to make her look him in the eye. The eyes that were masking the hurt he felt because she had chosen to be so insensitive with her word choice. He could see that she was worked up. She didn't want to meet his eyes and picked pouting and looking up towards her ceiling over looking at him.

He pressed his lips to hers faintly and felt her react immediately to his kiss. She wasn't upset with him for telling her, she was upset with Leigh-Anne for not telling her, and doing what a best friend does, instinctively, she was defending her friends honor.

But so was Zayn.

After he had gained Jade's interest, he smirked into the kiss and retreated, pulling on her bottom lip with his teeth, just the way he had learned she liked.

"Oh, Jade, you silly woman," he whispered, cupping her face and stroking it with his thumb fondly, loving how her cheeks suddenly filled with color. It was cute. "I think you forgot that I'm a stripper too."

_x

"Hey, Lou? I need a favor?" Liam asked pacing around his apartment. He couldn't believe he was calling Louis for such a thing. Louis was at the very bottom of the short list of people he would call in this situation.

"No, Liam, I will not suck your dick so stop asking," Louis joked and caused Liam to sigh and slap his forehead. Louis had once again proven why he wasn't Liam's first pick.

"As big as your mouth is, I don't think it would fit," Liam sassed back. "I need you to watch Zoe tonight."

"Shit, really? You'd let me watch her?" Louis asked surprised. "Especially after last time.."

"Trust me, if there was someone else that could, we wouldn't be talking about it," Liam groaned.

"I'm just saying cause she still has a knot on her head from when I dropped her the last time.."

Liam had just returned home and saw Louis running towards him with Zoe in his arms. Somehow, Louis confused her with a football and decided to fumble her and Liam just wasn't fast enough to catch her for the turnover.

That was the first and last time Louis ever babysat Zoe.

"Yes, yes, and I almost knocked your teeth out. I told you not to run with her, and what did you do?" Liam asked sternly, his paternal side showing through.

"I ran.." Louis replied sadly. "But the doctors said she was alright! And there's no chance that I'll be running with her now, she's too big for me to carry around like that."

"Yeah, luckily," Liam snorted. "It's only for a few hours, Lou, and she should be asleep most of the time."

"Sorry, man. I can't," Louis told him.

"Why not? I trust that you won't teach her how to smoke while I'm gone," Liam said checking his fridge to see what Louis was actually capable of making without poisoning his daughter. With the money Leigh-Anne had given him he still had enough to stock up on groceries and Zoe was very pleased when he came home with her favorite snacks.

"I've got a date."

Liam laughed as he closed the refridgerator door. "A date? Who would go on a date with you?"

"That chick's mom from the bachelorette party, that's who," he answered smartly. "I think she wants a piece of The Tommo and honestly, I'm thinking about letting her have it." If she wanted to be his sugar momma, he wasn't go to tell her no.

Liam shuddered at the thought. "Louis, she's older than your mom!"

"True, but she also has alot of funds that I don't, plus she's got an ass that doesn't quit," he snickered.

Liam tried to shake image of Louis and Leigh-Anne's mom from his head but it didn't work. It was disturbing.

"Speaking of the party, how was the guest of honor?" he asked slyly. "You never told me."

"Maybe because you left me stranded at her house with no clothes and no way to call anyone?" Liam wondered sarcastically.

"It was all in good fun, Liam, lighten up. You haven't done the walk of shame properly until you've done it mostly naked." Louis had 17 catwalks of his naked glory under his belt and he was still counting.

"I didn't want to do the walk of shame at all," Liam hissed. "So can you watch Zoe or not?"

"First tell me how she was. I need to know what to expect from her mother." The only thing he gathered was that she liked being tied up.

Liam couldn't believe this, and because he couldn't, Liam found himself running his hand down his face and sighing. "She was fine."

"Yes, she was. But was she -"

"Louis!" Liam shouted, his patience running out. He didn't want to discuss her or what happened that night, anymore.

"Okay, geez. No need to yell, Liam, damn," Louis complained. "You know I have a problem with my hearing."

Liam muttered under his breath, "That isn't the only problem you have," and if Louis heard, he didn't comment on it.

"No. I can't watch Zoe because I have a hot date with a hot cougar and there's no way I'm going to cancel," he told him. "Have you called Danielle?"

Liam frowned. "Of course I did, she was the first person I called." Like always. "But she said she couldn't because she had to do a thing."

Louis hummed. "And the guys?"

"We're all working tonight.."

"And you haven't been able to find another babysitter yet?" Louis wondered.

"No.."

"What about one of your neighbors? Could they watch her?"

Liam snorted. Definitely not his neighbors. He took it back. Louis was still at the bottom of the list, but when you factored in his neighbors, Louis came second last, but only by a small margin.

"You haven't met my neighbors, they'd sell her for a crackrock, Lou."

"Naa, Zoe's too fucking cute. I'd say a crackrock and a personal bottle of Hennessy," Louis commented and Liam pulled a face.

As serious as he was about his daughter being sold for drugs, he was still kidding. It wasn't a comforting thought knowing that she could be sold for drugs and alcohol.

"Lou, just shut up and get ready for your date," Liam mumbled hanging up his phone and tossing it on his couch, groaning when it bounced twice, jumped off and hit the floor. He had called everyone in his limited contacts and nobody could watch Zoe.

I could always leave her here alone and tell her not to open the door and keep the lights and TV on when she went to bed.. he thought. But he couldn't risk it. Not in this neighborhood and definitely not when someone's apartment had been broken into this morning.

What the hell was he going to do?

Liam plopped down on his old couch and bent over to collect his apparently suicidal phone from the floor. He had no other choice other than to call his boss and say he couldn't come in. He would get fired for it too. His boss was tired of his 'I couldn't find anyone to watch my daughter' excuse and told him the last time he had used it that it would be just that. The last time. He would be fired, no questions asked.

He couldn't afford losing his job. He couldn't afford anything, really. But atleast he had an income, and as insufficient as it was, it still paid the bills...kinda.

He looked at his watch and moaned. He needed to start walking to get Zoe from daycare before he called his boss and got fired and started looking for another job. Liam pulled on his jacket and grabbed his dark blue umbrella that rested near the door, today wasn't the best day for rain but it sure did match his mood: Hopeless. Because things were not looking up.

_x

"So I was thinking about going out tonight," Harry said in her ear, twirling one of her curls around his slender fingers.

"I thought you wanted to keep things low-key for a few days?" she asked, wondering why Harry had suddenly changed his mind.

"I did, but now I think that we shouldn't stop ourselves from enjoying the last bits of our engagement just because of the paps," he said convincingly titling her head back with a gentle tug on her hair and leaning in to kiss her deeply.

Naturally she would've moaned. Naturally she would've started working on undressing him ASAP. Naturally she would've jumped on him and waited until he picked her up and carried her to their bedroom.

But she didn't.

Because as much as Harry liked to change his mind, he didn't do it that fast and without better reasoning...and being seen out in public together was exactly the advice Todd given her earlier.

It didn't take seven long years of them being together for her to know that Harry was only teasing her right now. He would get her hot for him and pull away seemingly unaffected and then he'd whisk her away to a fancy restaurant where it was dark and was perfect for his hands to be all over her. And it also didn't take seven long years of them being together for her to know that Harry didn't own any Chanel No. 5 perfume.

It was no coincidence that he smelled of perfume after coming in from work when he worked around men all day and was more touchy-feely than he'd been in weeks.

Harry was definitely cheating on her.

And if he tried to deny it, she would love to record his answer when she asked why he smelled of a perfume he knew she didn't like the smell of.

"Harry," she called out.

She felt the smirk on his lips and wondered how long it would last because that was not a moan.

"Harry," she said again, waiting for him to get the message.

"Are you ready to go? I made reservations at -"

"I'm busy," she said quickly, pushing him away, but not too hard in fear that she'd damage his pride.

"Busy?"

"Yes, busy. I thought we were going to be low-key like you said this morning and I made plans for the evening," she lied. If Harry thought she hadn't caught onto him always leaving in the middle of the night or right after dinner because of some "emergency," he was mistaken.

"Plans like what?" he inquired. He wasn't made aware that she was doing anything and that meant her plans were nonexistent.

"Plans like organizing for the children's charity that I do every year," she said and realized how easy it was to lie to him. The countless lies that she could tell him were piling up in her brain and she didn't know which ones to use.

Harry's greener than green eyes narrowed at her suspiciously. "I thought you already did that months ago?" He was sure of it. He was there!

She nodded and shrugged. "What can I say? The children of the world are needier than ever this year." She felt like a habitual liar and she was on a roll. "Plus it's raining outside, I don't feel like stepping over puddles," she added as a test. A test to see if Harry really knew her like she was the woman he was going to spend the rest of his life with. If he did, he would've known that she was lying from her last sentence.

Leigh-Anne loved the rain. She loved running in it, dancing in it, and jumping into puddles with so much force that her clothes would get muddy in the process and not a fuck would be given about it. Harry should know that. They had met in the rain.

She was dressed in her green raincoat and matching polka dotted boots and taking selfies in the pouring rain when he stopped and said that it was about to storm and that she needed to get in a house or atleast somewhere safe. He offered her a ride. Her hair was flat to her head, curly and clinging to her neck, there were flecks of mud on her face and she was cackling when she rudely flung the mud from her fingers towards him and it landed on his face and clothes.

At the time, Leigh-Anne didn't find anything interesting about their exchange, she just wanted to dance in the rain that day. But Harry pulled up in his shiny, big, black car offering her a ride when she only lived a block away from where she stood and if the wind hadn't picked up after she soiled his suit she would've told him no. However the tree branches were bending and garbage cans were being knocked over from the voilent air whipping around her and she sheepishly apologized and wondered if his offer was still on the table.

Being a gentleman, Harry decided he would still give her a ride even though he was pissed at her for ruining his tailormade suit. He liked her youthful exuberance -it shocked him to know that she was actually older than him- and though she was dirty, he could clearly see how bewitchingly sublime she was. He knew with a face like hers she could go places, and from the look of the house he dropped her off at, it looked like the only things she needed was a push and a benefactor. So in a split decision he decided to give her his card and told her to call him if she ever found herself wanting more out of life.

So that was exactly what he gave her. More. More than she had ever dreamed of... At a price of course.

They didn't jump into their relationship right away. They were business partners and friends first. Harry had been the one falling for her behind the scenes and chose to ask her on a non-business related date...and things just seemed to go from there.

"I had to wait five minutes to get this reservation, a little rain isn't going to make you melt, Leigh-Anne," Harry argued and proving that he really didn't know his fiancé. "We have to be there in 20 minutes."

"Doesn't matter, I'm still busy," she replied airily. "You can go."

"Leigh, I -"

The doorbell rang and both of them looked to the other for who it could be. Leigh-Anne's friend had already stopped by with her pregany test and she wasn't expecting any of the girls to come over. Harry didn't invite anyone over either, he was obviously trying to get out of the house. With neither party moving to answer the door, the bell kept ringing, and ringing, and ringing until Harry groaned and got up to see who it was.

It wasn't anyone Harry knew.

It was a rugged looking man around his age holding an umbrella in one hand and a child in his arms, her own arms around his neck, and even with an umbrella to shield them from the rain they were soaked like wet cats.

"Um, can I help you?" Harry asked, not liking Liam dodgy appearance.

"Yeah, uh.." Well shit, Liam thought adjusting Zoe. "Is Leigh-Anne here?"

Harry nodded but didn't move to let him in.

"Hey, Leigh?" he called over his shoulder, keeping an eye on Liam. "There's a guy here named.." he trailed off waiting for Liam to fill in the blank.

"Liam," he offered up quickly, nervous about how Harry's eyes looked like they were dissecting him. Did Harry already know about him and Leigh-Anne?

"Liam...Do you know him?" Harry asked her.

Liam didn't have to time to invest in celebrity gossip when he had so many woes to fuss about, but he knew who he was standing infront of. Harry Styles, The Harry Styles..

And he slept with his fiancé. His fucking fiancé.

If he wasn't constantly trying to set a good example for Zoe he probably would've shit himself on their doorstep.

"Liam?" Leigh-Anne asked, perking up at the name and getting up to see for herself. She thought that maybe Harry was trying to psych her out and catch her off gaurd so she would take whatever bait he was casting. That was just how Harry operated.

Harry stared at Liam and the child in his arms and wondered how he knew his Leigh-Anne. He didn't look like the type of person he permitted her to converse with.

"Oh," Leigh-Anne gasped, her heart picking up as her eyes drank in Liam's wet and disheveled appearance. He still looked good though. Exactly the way she remembered. "Uh yeah. Liam's helping me with the charity event. Don't just stand there, Harry, move! Don't you see he has a child in his arms?" she said assuming it was his daughter and pushing her fiancé out of the way, grabbing the kid from Liam and letting Liam follow her inside. Leigh-Anne shot him a quick look of 'just go with it,' and Liam cleared his throat.

"Thanks," he said standing near the door so he didn't drip on their floor.

What the hell was he thinking coming here and bringing Zoe with him? It was risky and drastic, he knew, but he had nowhere else to go and he just couldn't lose his job. He was keeping their affair a secret (for the most part, the guys didn't really count) when he could blackmail her and exploit their night of indiscretion, but Liam didn't want that, he didn't want to do that. That wasn't the type of man he was. He just wanted a babysitter for a few hours.

Zoe shuddered against Leigh-Anne's body and sniffled as she was carried into some room with the strange woman her father handed her off too. Leigh-Anne's hand rubbed her back and she took Zoe with her into her closet that held her casual wear. She didn't have anything that would actually fit, but the kid was soaked through to the bone, anything would be better than what she had on now.

"What about this?" Leigh-Anne asked letting her stand on her own as she pulled out a thick woolen sweater. "Do you like pink?"

Zoe looked at her with curiosity but didn't speak, her Daddy said to never talk to strangers... But whoever this woman was that her dad had trusted enough to let her take her was very pretty.

"Okay.." Leigh-Anne muttered awkwardly picking out a different sweater. "What about purple?" she guessed and was only blinked at in response. "Purple it is," she muttered.

She was adorable, really. Her hair tastefully braided on one side with a wet bow, her eyes, just like Liam's, -there was no need for a DNA test- carefully watching her every move, and she was just so...small.

"Um...I'm Leigh-Anne," she said introducing herself. "I'm a.." Saying that she was an engaged woman that slept with her father a few days ago and may or may not be having her little brother or sister wouldn't suffice. "A friend of your Dads..."

Zoe only nodded.

"What's your name?" Leigh-Anne asked bending over to untie Zoe's wet shoes. "Let's get you changed, okay? We don't want you to get sick."

And Zoe let her take off her shoes and wet socks, though when it came to her clothes the girl covered herself and ordered, that's right, ordered Leigh-Anne to turn around while she undressed and slipped on the purple sweater. She chuckled humorously to herself. The girl could tell her what to do but wouldn't disclose her name.. she was definitely Liam's daughter.

"Feel better? A little warmer?" Leigh-Anne wondered, extending her hand out and Zoe grabbed it, feeling that she could trust this pretty woman that claimed to be a friend of her Daddy's...plus her sweater was really soft. "Okay, now let's go find your Dad."

Liam didn't move anywhere. He was stuck in the same spot at their door sweating bullets because what was he expected to say? "I slept with your fiancé" sounded alot like "please murder me" to him.

"So when is the charity event?" Harry asked.

"Oh uh... a few weeks? Um, after your honeymoon and all of that?" Liam replied unsurely.

"Has Leigh-Anne invited you to our wedding?"

If Liam wasn't so afraid for his life he would have snorted and rolled his eyes, however, Harry was a powerful man who shouldn't be trifled with.

"No, she hasn't. I'm afraid we aren't that close." They were only close enough to see one another naked and exchange bodily fluids...Yep. "Just acquaintances working for the greater good of the world."

"Yes, she's good at helping the less fortunate," he mumbled. "I'm assuming that was your daughter she carried away?"

"Yeah, Zoe.."

"Pretty name. Cute kid," Harry complimented. "I can't wait to have my first child," he hummed. "Leigh and I are gonna try for one soon."

"Oh, that's uh...interesting. They're a handful," Liam told him honestly. "But there's two of you," he said hurriedly. "I'm sure you guys can handle it."

"I'm sure we can, too," Harry responded with a smile. "Thanks."

"You're welcome.."

Liam couldn't be more relieved when he saw Leigh-Anne skipping with Zoe into the livingroom. He was a second away from blurting out 'I slept with Leigh-Anne!' in Harry's face out of sheer guilt. He couldn't handle keeping secrets and this one was huge.

"Harry? You didn't offer Liam any clothes? What happened to your manners?" Leigh-Anne scolded picking Zoe up and placing her on the couch.

"I forgot them at work." Harry shrugged, not caring that Liam was standing there dripping.

She almost snapped at him. If Liam had been one of his friends he would've told her not to be so useless when company was around and to fetch him something. But instead she smiled fakely and shook her head.

"Harry," she said sweetly. "You're going to be late for dinner."

"Shit," he cursed checking his watch. He was so preoccupied with scrutinizing Liam that he had forgotten about his reservations.

"You should take Ed. He's been asking about you," she lied. "I'll be here when you get back."

Harry still muttered curses. He didn't want to take Ed there, it was a romantic spot, not a place you would take one of your mates.

"Alright," he sighed. It was okay, he had someone he could take there as a back up option. "I'll see you later." He swiftly walked over to her and gave her a kiss on the cheek since there were innocent eyes that had taken an interest in either him because he swore or his accent, he knew it was one or the other. "Goodbye Zoe," he said with a small smile. "Liam," he addressed gruffly, shaking his hand and giving him a nod before grabbing his own black umbrella and heading out towards their car that was parked out front.

Liam and Leigh-Anne left out identical sighs of relief when the door was finally shut.

A sly smile appeared on Leigh-Anne's lip stained mouth. "Zoe? That's your name?" she asked and Zoe giggled. "Why didn't you tell me your name was so beautiful?? I was going to start calling you Priscilla!" she teased and began tickling the child.

"Leigh-Anne, I hate to interupt but if you could give me something to change into, I'd appreciate it," Liam said tugging his dripping coat off. "Your fiancé is quiet the uh..host."

"He's so insensitive," she complained before waltzing out of the room and grabbing a shirt and sweats for her 'guest' and locking her front door while she was at it. "I'm sorry for his behavior, he's usually more hospitable.."

"Is he?" Liam asked in disbelief, accepting the clothes and looking for the bathroom.

"Down the hall and to the left," she directed and watched him disappear. "Is your Dad always this grumpy?" she asked Zoe.

Zoe shook her head passionately. "He's not always grumpy, he's just upset that we got wet on the way here."

"Oh...why are you guys here? Do you know?" she asked wondering if Zoe could give her an answer before she asked Liam herself.

"Someone needs to watch me while he goes to work and Auntie Dani was busy," Zoe replied simply, shrugging her little shoulders.

"And he brought you here?" Leigh-Anne asked under her breath. "How'd you guys get here, Zoe?"

"We took a bus and then we walked...well, Daddy walked and he carried me," she answered and caused Leigh-Anne to take out her phone and open a certain app.

"Oh.." He walked with her out in the rain like that? What the hell?

"Alright," Liam cut it, interupting their little talk and adjusting the shirt she gave him just like before. "Leigh-Anne, can I speak to you for a second?"

She nodded, turning on her 90inch TV and gave Zoe the remote after turning it to Nick Jr. for her.

"Zoe," Liam said sternly, his voice deep and authoritative. "Don't touch anything."

"Okay, I won't." She grinned and looked at him, scooting back in the couch to get comfy in all of its softness.

"Zoe, ignore him. Touch whatever you want," Leigh-Anne said elbowing Liam when she reached his side. "You act like she's the tasmanian devil out to destroy my house," she whispered.

Liam scoffed, "You obviously don't know my daughter." Overly curious and extremely clumsy. "Anyways. I was wondering if you could -"

"Yes," she answered. "Zoe already told me... What I don't understand is why? Here? You shouldn't be here! I shouldn't be anywhere near you!" Especially when Harry didn't quite scratch that sexual itch like Liam had.

"I know, I know," he huffed carding his hair. "And I had planned to stay away but I couldn't get anyone to watch her and my boss would fire me if I called in. That's why I brought her here. I don't-" Liam bit his bottom lip and sighed, he hated to admit to any form of weakness or ask for help. "I didn't have anyone to turn to and I knew that even if you said no..."

She patiently waited for him to finish his sentence, only she put the pieces together and frowned.

"If I said 'no' you would, what? Make me? Twist my arm until I said 'yes' or go public about us?" she guessed weakly.

"Look, I'm in a tough spot right now, okay?" he snapped loudly. "I'm a single dad who's stripping to get by and -"

"I don't care about any of that, Liam," she whispered looking over towards Zoe to see if she heard her father yelling. She hadn't, she was chortling adorably at whatever show was playing. "The least I could do is watch your daughter while you work... You haven't said anything to anyone so far when you could be milking this for what it's worth, but you're not, and I'm grateful.."

Leigh-Anne turned back towards Liam and sighed. "But I don't want this to keep happening either."

There was no way that Liam showing up whenever he needed a babysitter would be positive. It would lead into a trite porno of the dad and the babysitter making it on the couch while the baby was asleep and Leigh-Anne wasn't completely against the idea either.

"It won't," he promised quickly.

"I'm willing to pay you so you'll keep quiet," she whispered, crossing her arms under her bosom and unintentionally pushing them up more and gaining Liam's attention to them. He kinda missed those, they were just the right size to fill his hand and they were just so soft.

"You don't have to," he whispered back, gulping when he realized how much money she could possibly be talking and how much that money could help him. "I wasn't going- I'm not going to tell anyone.."

"I didn't think you would," she chuckled dryly. "But desperate times call for desperate measures and you were desperate enough tonight to travel in the rain with your daughter so someone, anyone, could watch her. I don't mind watching her, Liam. She's cute as hell," she complimented looking back at the child on her couch. When she hit puberty, Liam was going to have his hands full with chasing away boys trying to corrupt his baby.

"Thanks..." he mumbled and checked his phone. "So I have to be at work in an hour and the bus comes at -"

She waved her hand dismissing his words. "I ordered a cab for you when you were changing. What time do you get off?"

"Thanks again," he mumbled. If he could've afforded to take a cab on their way over he would've, but he couldn't, and he had to walk a mile. Sure he could've paid for a cab with some of the extra money he had, but a bus was just so much cheaper. She lived like, 25 minutes away from him and he wasn't willing to pay whatever the total price was at the end of the ride...then there was the whole going to work part. "I get off at four so.."

Leigh-Anne nodded thinking it over. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do," she announced coming up with a feasible game plan. "You're gonna go to work, I'll watch Zoe, and when you get off, call for a cab to bring you back here, alright? You can sleep for a few hours and when you wake up we can have breakfast and then you guys can leave."

Genius. Just genius.

Liam's mouth opened some at her "plan," then his body shook with mirth. This woman was unbelievable.

"I think I'll just grab Zoe and go home.." he told her.

Leigh-Anne glared at Liam and poked his muscled chest with her finger. "Why would you wake her up just to take her home? And it still might be raining when you get back. I'm telling you that you two can stay and eat breakfast before leaving. Just accept my offer!"

Liam got annoyed with her poking his pecs and grabbed her hand in his. "What about Harry? What will you tell him when he sees that the two of us are still here when he gets back?"

"I'll tell him the truth." She snatched her hand from his and hid it behind her back. Okay, touching him was bad. It only made her want to touch him more...and possibly lick him. Liam wearing Harry's clothes should bother her. Turns out, it didn't and he looked hot.

"The truth?" Liam asked dumbly.

"That we worked on the charity event all night, it got late and I offered our home to the both of you," she explained. That would be their truth and that's what they would stick too.

"Ah yes, the truth," he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"You know what? I'm good without your constant sarcasm, Liam. You keep acting like I've done something to you!" she hissed lowly so Zoe wouldn't hear. "So fine. If you want to wake up your daughter at 4:30 in the morning to take her home, you can."

She just wanted to assist him in the best way or ways she could think of and he was adamantly refusing to take her helping hand.

"I don't want to wake her up," he replied honestly. Coming in second next to Zayn, Zoe was the crankiest person ever if you disturbed her sleep. "But I don't want to be here any longer than I have to, either."

There were a few reasons why he didn't want to be there for an extensive amount of time, though Leigh-Anne picked the first one that came to mind and smirked.

The temptation.

"Oh," she said teasingly, her eyes half lidded and her mouth in 'O' formation. "Scared you're going to want to sneak in my bed?"

Of course he was.

"No," he lied, pulling at his shirt. "Plus your fiancé will be there. I can't imagine how that would look."

It would look like both of them were ready to meet their maker.

"He won't be coming home, he'll be laying in someone else's bed tonight," she spat bitterly. He would be in whoever the hell wore Chanel No. 5's bed.

"And how would you know?" And how could she accuse him of cheating when she already has?

"He has hickeys that I didn't put there and he smells like a purfume I don't wear.* That's all I need to know," she said sadly, looking at her feet. It was depressing how many nights they didn't sleep in the same bed and how many nights when they actually did, that she would wake up alone. And to think Harry was the man she was over the moon about marrying and he was cheating on her. "I know he's probably at the restaurant he made reservations for, with her. They'll talk, and laugh, and maybe on the way back to her house they'll pull over and have sex in the car," she ranted.

"And if you know this..." Liam was perplexed. "Why are you still marrying him?"

Liam couldn't possibly marry someone that he knew was cheating on him out of respect for himself. He also couldn't marry someone that he cheated on out of guilt.

"I would say it's because I love him," she answered slowly. That was what she should say, it was what she was expected to say. "These days it's like I only love him sometimes. Most of the time I can't stand him," she confessed. "But I've spent seven years of my life with him, Liam, I can't let seven years go."

"So...you'll just settle with being unhappy?" Still, he was perplexed.

He would rather put seven years behind him than be unhappy for the rest of his life.

"No. I'm not unhappy, I'm just not.." Satisfied with the way things were going right now. Content with being Harry's living, breathing, sit, stand, and roll over, wife.

"Happy," he supplied knowingly, Leigh-Anne scoffed and pushed him.

No, she wasn't happy. It's been awhile since she was truly happy and from the very beginning of planning the wedding, nothing has been the way she wanted it. Yes, it would be beautiful and enchanting, it would leave everyone that's invited in absolute awe. But it wouldn't be how she pictured it. It wasn't the dream wedding she talked about as a young girl, it was Harry's dream wedding. (She still was upset with his leather tablecloth idea.)

The sound of a horn being blown was heard and they both knew that was Liam's cab. "What's your phone number?"

"Why would you -"

"So I can call you to open the door when I get back from work," he stated obviously. Duh.

With a grumble or two she gave him her number and pulled out money for the cab fare from her pocket. "And you'd better come back," she ordered. "Zoe's cute, but you better not just up and leave her here with me to raise. We have a lot to talk about when you get back, anyways."

Liam rolled his eyes thinking, 'Yes, mother' and accepted the money with a muttered "Thanks." They walked together to the door, Liam giving Zoe and bear hug and a fatherly kiss as he told her to be on her best behavior while he was gone. Even though he said he wouldn't bring Zoe over again for Leigh-Anne to watch, he didn't want to have her refuse because Zoe misbehaved if he really needed her to.

So when they reached the entrance to her home she handed him back his umbrella and Liam had to ask, "And what do we have to talk about? You paying me to keep quiet?"

Leigh-Anne wasn't the nervous, timid type, she didn't get jittery, and Liam knew it. He had firsthand experience with her attitude and knew she was headstrong. But the topic of their impending conversation reduced her to someone he didn't know and made him wonder where her sass went.

"Okay, so um.." She couldn't even look him in the eye! Liam quite liked this Leigh-Anne. "The night of my bachelorette party -amazing, really- but we might have a teensy weensy problem? Might. I don't really know yet.."

The cab driver honked the horn impatiently and Liam frowned. "Just spit it out. I have to go." Time was money, and even though it was her money he was using, the meter was still running.

"I might be pregnant," she blurted out and covered her mouth. When Liam dropped the umbrella in his hand and gawked at her she couldn't help but think that she could've tackled that with a bit more finesse.

___xx


	5. 5

Watching Zoe didn't go exactly as Leigh-Anne planned and through it all, she wished she had listened to Liam's warning about his daughter.

The first thing Leigh-Anne did wrong was asking Zoe what she wanted to do.

Zoe picked up on Leigh-Anne's massive closet of clothes and decided that playing dress up was the thing to do, and naturally Leigh-Anne turned it into a high-end fashion show. She pulled out dresses for herself and other casual clothes for Zoe to model as they hit the runway that was actually her hallway. Leigh-Anne found herself forced to take pictures of Zoe and learned that the child was very photogenic, Zoe had the cutest dimple in her right cheek. If Liam wanted, Leigh-Anne could probably muscle her way into getting Zoe a contract doing children's commercials, it wouldn't be hard considering how she picked up on the basic modeling poses Leigh-Anne did; the woman even taught Zoe how to smize. After several compliments and comparisons to her "Auntie Dani" later, Leigh-Anne thought they should change their activity.

Zoe picked a princess tea party and also wanted to use Leigh-Anne's expensive glasses that usually hosted champagne, wines, and liquors of high quality for their less than five dollar tea.

So still dressed in a Givenchy gown that racked up to $80,000, one of Leigh-Anne's favorites when they accentuated her bust just the way she liked, they sipped the Lipton tea she ended up making. They talked about cartoons, something Leigh-Anne never watched these days, clothes, pretty people (that conversation lead back to her Auntie Dani) and boys. It only took Zoe one look at Leigh-Anne's gleaming engagement ring for her to remember the man that had let her and her father in and how she liked the way he spoke for their subject to turn to boys. Apparently there was this boy at Zoe's daycare that she thought was, "Nice, kinda cute and he always gave her his apples at snack time because she told him once that those were her favorite." Leigh-Anne made a mental note to remind herself to tell Liam about his daughters already budding love life. Heartbreakingly enough, Leigh-Anne spilt the hot liquid on her lap after Zoe made a comment about her father finding someone that would make him happy.

"Auntie Dani makes my Daddy happy," the child muttered looking at her glass, she was being really careful with it just the way Leigh-Anne had told her so she wouldn't break it; her Daddy would be so mad if she did. "Auntie Dani is pretty, she's nice, super funny and we always do fun stuff to make Daddy upset, but he's never really upset..well, not at me."

Leigh-Anne was listening, but she was still cursing herself in her head for ruining her dress, she would have to take it to the cleaners and she prayed they would be able to salvage it.

"But I don't think Daddy like-likes Auntie Dani..."

Liam had explained to her that he and Danielle weren't actually related so she wouldn't be confused, and that's why Zoe didn't understand why the two of them could just be together like in the movies she and Danielle would watch during one of their sleepovers. Zoe felt like Danielle did everything a mom was supposed to do. She made sure she was clean, fed, she did her hair, took her places and picked her up from daycare when her father couldn't. She just acted like a mom to her in Zoe's eyes.

"What do you think?" she asked looking up at Leigh-Anne.

"Oh, uh.." She wasn't really expecting to be put on the spot about the man she had recently an affair with. "Well uh, maybe he doesn't? Like, maybe your Dad just likes your Auntie Dani as a friend? That's still okay, right?"

"Yeah, I guess.." Zoe mumbled fiddling with her cup, but not too much. "I love my Daddy, but he can't do the girly stuff like Auntie Dani can. I kinda want a Mom to do the stuff he can't and be at home to watch me when he has to go to work."

Oh...this probably wasn't a conversation she should be having with a child she didn't even know existed until she literally showed up at her doorstep.

"Um..don't worry, Zoe!" Leigh-Anne told her in a cheery tone. "I'm sure your Dad will find someone that he really like-likes eventually. Your Dad is pretty awesome, and you had to get your good looks from somewhere because I've never seen a kid as cute as you before!"

Zoe nodded and unconsciously bit at her lip wondering if she would get in trouble for asking.

"Do you like my Daddy?"

Leigh-Anne spilt whatever was left in her cup on the rest of her dress and jumped up, it didn't take longer than a second for her to start swearing.

"Fucking shit that's hot!" she yelled reaching for the zipper on the side of the dress. "Fuck! Fucking shit! Goddammit!"

Zoe gasped, eyes wide, and clasped her hand over her mouth while pointing with her other.

Leigh-Anne paid no attention to the deflowering of Zoe's innocent ears, she felt like her skin was burning off so she stripped herself of the dress as quickly as humanly possible before dashing into the kitchen for some frozen peas.

Zoe didn't know what else to do besides cover her eyes. Leigh-Anne was just standing there rubbing a handful of ice cubes against her skin, because she'd forgotten that Harry didn't eat peas and there wasn't anything else in their freezer that she was willing to put on her skin, and making the same noises that she had once heard on a show her Auntie Dani had accidentally turned it to. Danielle had told her to cover her eyes so she could change the channel, she had dropped the remote in shock, and though Zoe couldn't see anything anymore she heard everything.

After her skin seemed to cool off Leigh-Anne threw what was left of the melting ice cubes in the sink and sighed in content. Finally, she remembered she had a guest, that guest was a child, and that she was standing in her kitchen infront of said child practically naked. She didn't want to make things weird but there wasn't a way things could not be weird at this point.

Leigh-Anne ran out of her kitchen to her bedroom to find some pajamas and model-changingly fast, she was sitting down across from Zoe once more and gently prying Zoe's tiny fingers from her face.

"It's okay, I've got on clothes now.."

Zoe looked at Leigh-Anne, inspecting her new wardrobe and nodded.

"And you didn't hear anything I said, got it? I didn't say any bad words while you were here," Leigh-Anne said trying to convince her.

"No, you said fuc-" Zoe clamped her hand over mouth mouth when she realized she was about to repeat the same words the adult before her had yelled out in pain.

Leigh-Anne smirked. "I think we're even. If you won't tell, I won't tell?

Zoe quickly agreed. She would be in big trouble if her father found out she was using bad words.

"...Does this mean the tea party is over?" Zoe wondered and Leigh-Anne let out a light laugh. She had said to hell with the tea party the first time she spilled her tea.

"Yes, it's over. We can do something else now." Reaching to grab their glasses and standing to pour out the contents and place them in her kitchen sink, Leigh-Anne checked the time and wondered why Zoe wasn't the slightest bit tired. It was late and a child her age should've been in bed already.

"You didn't answer my question though.." Zoe thought that Leigh-Anne was ignoring her.

Head cocked to the side, Leigh-Anne didn't know what question Zoe was talking about. She wanted to make sure her flesh wasn't scalding off so Zoe's question had to wait.

"What was your question, again?" Leigh-Anne asked coming back to sit across from the child.

"Do you like my Daddy?" Zoe repeated. Her eyes were pleading for an answer and she just looked so down about her father finding someone. Yeah Liam was a grumpy, sarcastic jerk, but did his daughter really think he would never like-like someone enough to get married...or whatever?

"I mean, you said he was awesome, and you said he was cute so -"

"Hey! I did not!" Leigh-Anne gasped.

Zoe's eyes narrowed at her some and her head titled downwards. "You said that I was cute and that I got my looks from my Daddy, everyone says I look like my Daddy, so that means you think my Daddy is cute."

Leigh-Anne let her jaw hang a bit. Zoe really wasn't playing around with this matchmaking thing for her father, even if it was with someone she didn't know but reminded her of her Auntie Dani. Before she answered her, Leigh-Anne cleared her throat and chose her words carefully.

"Okay, I think your Dad is cute," she confessed with a shrug so Zoe would understand that it wasn't a big deal. "But I don't like-like your Dad."

Zoe pouted. "Why not?" She would be okay if this woman liked her Dad that way. Leigh-Anne seemed like someone that would take good care of her when her father wasn't there, and they'd been having a lot of fun playing dress up and chatting over tea. Besides Leigh-Anne's slip up with her swear words, Zoe completely approved.

Had Zoe been older, maybe an older teenager, Leigh-Anne would've told her exactly why not and she wouldn't want to believe everything she was told her father.

"Because your Dad and I are just friends," she answered simply.

"If you're friends, why am I just now meeting you? I should've met you when I was a baby like all of my Daddy's other friends," Zoe exclaimed crossing her arms stubbornly.

"Because we're uh...new friends," she replied and bit the inside of her cheek. That sounded like a lie even to her. "How about we play with some makeup, huh?" Leigh-Anne asked her so they could change the subject.

Zoe's eyes lit up and she nodded her head rapidly. "Sometimes my Auntie Dani brings over her makeup bag and she does my makeup like hers in her pictures!"

Leigh-Anne's eye was twitching in annoyance. Zoe just wouldn't shut up about this woman, whoever she was, and it was starting to bother her. It felt like going on a date and the only thing they seem to talk about is there ex that they're obviously still hung up on.

"Sounds like your Auntie Dani does a lot of fun stuff with you... What's her real name?" she wondered standing up, making sure she grabbed her phone, and beckoning the child to follow her.

"Danielle, but she likes for me and my Daddy to call her Dani...sometimes my Daddy calls her Dan though," Zoe explained following Leigh-Anne through the maze that was her house.

"Danielle...what? Maybe I know your Auntie Dani from somewhere?" Leigh-Anne made another turn and opened the door before her and walked it. It was almost a supply closet with boxes of makeup that CoverGirl had sent her so she didn't run out...ever. "Y'know, pretty people hang around other pretty people."

"Peazer."

"Danielle...Peazer?" she asked in shock, grabbing everything they needed from a box she had already opened, because she was just joking about knowing the woman. "Long, light brown curly hair? Does she dance? Is she kinda tall?"

And with each question she bombarded Zoe with, the child still squealed in excitement, clapping her hands and jumping up and down. "Yes! That's my Auntie Dani!"

"It's a small world after all," Leigh-Anne muttered to herself. "Wanna know something kinda cool? I know your Auntie Dani, she was over earlier today actually..."

She had met Danielle through a mutual co-worker in the modeling industry, they had a lot in common and became instant friends. After Leigh-Anne's career really took off they weren't able to hang out as much as they used to, so recently, since Leigh-Anne had nothing but time on her hands she had been calling Danielle so they could catch up. They used to be really close, they still were, but distance was always a problem in their friendship, mainly Leigh-Anne being away somewhere for work or somewhere with Harry. Danielle was like her bestfriend/sister, and not until a few months ago did they start hanging back out. She didn't know how much she had missed her, she normally had Jesy, Jade and Perrie to occupy her time, so it felt refreshing being able to go out for coffee with a longtime friend. Danielle was someone Leigh-Anne could trust to keep secrets and they always looked out for each other, it was a sisterhood thing, and whatever Leigh-Anne had done for Danielle, Danielle would do for Leigh-Anne.

"Was she??"

"Yep...she sure was.."

Danielle was the friend that bought her the pregnancy tests.

_x

Liam was distracted.

He was so worried about Zoe being with Leigh-Anne and the possibilty of Leigh-Anne being pregnant that everyone could tell something was off with him tonight. He didn't dance like he usually did, his strokes were plain and his muscles weren't flexing for those extra tips. First it was Niall asking what could've happened for the Payne Train to lose steam.

Niall had said it in jest as he passed Liam by while they danced on the stage together. Niall noticed that Liam wasn't doing that one move with his hips that he had made up, it always made the ladies scream and then it would be raining money. After Niall saw that Liam wasn't doing any of his moves tonight, he was a little alarmed. But when Niall asked Liam again what was wrong, and seriously this time, Liam only waved him off and said that the rain was making him tired. Niall accepted this and decided not to meddle, but he kept one of his blue eyes on Liam the entire night.

Next it was his boss pulling him into his office that smelled like cologne and cigars, asking if Liam needed to go home and stay home. "Do you need to leave and never come back? Liam, if you don't go out there and cause some horny women to cream themselves, I'm sending you home with your last check." So with a bland expression Liam listened to his boss tell him that even though he was a favorite there, he didn't have any problems with having him replaced. He kept talking and talking, and after the second time his boss threatened to have Louis take his spotlight (and their boss hated Louis), Liam had tuned him out, everything he said after that went in one ear and out the other. Liam gave him a "I'll do better," and left his office.

Lastly, it was Zayn asking if he was alright. They were pulling money from their underwear, changing into their next costumes and oiling up their bodies again for their next performances and it was the only time they could really talk.

"Man, are you even in there?" he asked him waving his hand in Liam's face and snapping his fingers. "Snap outta it, yeah? You keep zoning out and it's turning off the ladies because you'd rather look into the distance instead of at them. You've been like this all night."

"I'm sorry, I'm just worried about Zoe and some other stuff," he confessed in a sigh, pulling on a jacket.

"She'll be fine," Zayn insisted. "Danielle's watching her, right?"

Liam shook his head and chewed his lip in a way that made Zayn think that maybe he should be worried about his Goddaughter too.

"You didn't leave her with Louis, did you?"

Liam scoffed. "I tried, but he had a date tonight."

Zayn nodded remembering their eldest friend telling him that yesterday. "So who is she with? Did you find a babysitter?"

"Leigh-Anne," Liam grumbled out, not looking Zayn in the eye.

"Wait..." Leigh-Anne? This didn't make any sense. "You left Zoe with the woman you slept with? The engaged one?"

Liam nodded slowly and waited for Zayn to blow up on him.

How could you leave my Goddaughter with her?

You don't even know that woman and you're leaving her with your child?

What's wrong with you?

Liam could hear them now.

"Y'know... I'm not having sex with her one little brunette friend because you wanted to know if she was okay? She wanted to argue with me about if you two had really slept together or not," Zayn told him. From everything Jade had told him about Leigh-Anne during their resting time, where they walked around her house (naked), ate food (naked), and cuddled (naked), Zayn had summed her up to be a decent person... besides the cheating on her fiancé part of course.

"Kinda liked her too until she made it seem like being a stripper was a bad thing." Jade was definitely cool up until she started throwing shade grenades. "Though she wasn't complaining about me being a stripper, apparently that's one of her kinks." Zayn rolled his eyes on that one. "But she said her friend wouldn't sleep with a stripper, like we were some lowly people that disgusted her... Does Leigh-Anne make you feel that way, Liam?"

"Huh?" Zayn had lost him at he was sleeping with Leigh-Anne's friend. Clearly Liam wasn't the only one who got some kind of party favor. Niall had that loud one, Zayn snagged the brunette, and Louis had probably hit a home run on his date with Leigh-Anne's mother by now.

Zayn groaned because Liam had obviously zoned out again. "Does she make you feel like you're shit when you're around her? ..Does Leigh-Anne care about you being a stripper?"

Liam had to take a moment to process this and his answers to both questions were no. He made himself feel like shit for comparing her obvious financial stability to his obvious financial instability, but never once did Leigh-Anne try to belittle him about his job. Fuck, she had just told him that she didn't care that he was a single Dad stripping to get by.

"No, she doesn't," Liam told his friend honestly, looking over for an explanation on why that mattered and Zayn shot him a lopsided smile.

"Then Zoe's in good hands," was all he said before they were being called to go back out on stage.

_x

"Mmm...ello?" Leigh-Anne answered groggily, sitting up and rubbing her sleep encrusted eyes.

"I'm outside.."

"Mmk.." she replied sleepily, ending the call and laying back down. Thirty seconds later her phone was ringing again. "Mmm..hello?"

"Leigh-Anne, open the door."

She huffed and moaned before ending the call for the second time. Slowly she dragged herself out of bed and to her front door to unlock it.

"Thanks," Liam told her stepping inside the warm house and shedding his outerwear along with his shoes. "Was she alright? Did she break anything?"

Leigh-Anne blinked at him tiredly and smiled. "We broke a lamp and I ruined one of my favorite dresses with tea...but she was alright."

A relieved sigh fell from his lips and he smirked at her tired appearance. "Zoe put you through the wringer, didn't she?"

Leigh-Anne approached him with open arms and embraced his overheated body. Liam was shocked for a moment before settling into hugging her back, with the way Leigh-Anne looked, she could use one.

"I'm sorry for not listening to you about Zoe," she apologized and felt the rumble of a laugh in the chest that her face was burried in. "I wasn't ready. She talked a lot and asked a lot of questions and I probably shouldn't have, but I gave her candy and other snacks with too much sugar. She tripped on over one of my heels but she was okay, she caught herself on the way down. She -"

"I tried to tell you," Liam said quietly, wondering when and if she was going to let him go. "Where is she?"

"She's asleep in a guest bedroom.." she mumbled turning her head so she could press her cheek against his chest. "She wanted to stay up and wait for you but she fell asleep watching The Cheetah Girls... Liam?" she asked pulling away just enough to have her arms around him and still see his face.

"Yeah?" Liam swallowed thickly at the sight of her. Completely exhausted, and it might've been because she was a model that influenced his thought, but Leigh-Anne wore "Tired" well. Makeup free and looking like she needed an eternal slumber because his daughter was a little much... Leigh-Anne was as beautiful as when she posed for magazine covers in his eyes. Maybe even more so when her professionally done makeup hid her (minor) imperfections and there was always photoshop. The woman in his arms, staring back at him with the slightest bags beneath her eyes, she was breathtaking.

"How do you do it?" she whispered, and before he could ask specifically what it is that she thought he did so well, she continued. "I'm so tired. I haven't been this tired in years, Liam. I've only watched her for a few hours and I'm beat... How do you do this everyday? I mean, look at me!"

"I see you," he said softly, his eyes raking over every detail of her face and taking it all of her features. "And yes, you look like shit," he joked halfheartedly. He highly doubted that Leigh-Anne could ever look bad, even on her worst day she still had to look amazing, he knew she did.

She almost said something smart back but she just didn't have the energy to start bickering with him. So she ignored him and hid her face back into his chest and sighed. "Did you make it to work on time?"

"Yeah. My boss threatened to fire me for not performing well enough tonight, though," he told her, his hand coming up and fiddling with the ends of her hair. He hadn't paid much attention to it or given its state a second thought until now as it passed through his fingers.

"Why not? Why didn't you shake that ass, Liam? It's a nice ass," she muttered. If she wasn't so spent she would grab his toned backside to prove her point.

"I was worried about Zoe. I've never liked being away from her for too long.." Liam confessed, he was still getting over his own sort of separation anxiety...And then there was the pregnancy thing..

"You didn't have to worry about her, I have a lot of nieces and nephews.. I don't watch them anymore, but I used to when I was a teenager." And like before, she pulled away to look up at him and she smiled. "Zoe was in good hands."

"Good hands," he echoed. Zayn said the same thing, and to hear her say it too made him accept this to be a truth.

"Liam?"

"Mmm?" he asked still looking at her, his eyes dropping to her lips now and again.

"Wanna see Zoe?" she wondered unlocking her arms from around his waist and pulling him to where the child slumbered and snored.

When they reached the room Liam saw his daughter passed out in a very different t-shirt from the one he remembered her being in last.

"If you don't already know, she kicks a lot in her sleep," she chuckled out, because Zoe had kicked the shit out of her. She was texting one Danielle Peazer and ordering clothes with Harry's card when Zoe delivered a merciless karate kick to her hipbone.

"Oh yeah, she fights.." Liam whispered back to her.

"Okay, well," Leigh-Anne said turning around to leave Liam and head to her own bedroom, "I'll see you in the morning," she yawned into her hand. "Goodnight, Liam."

"Where are you going?" Liam asked pulling on her wrist to bring her back to him.

"Seriously? To sleep, Liam. In my own bed," she replied looking at his hand. "I need to sleep if I'm going to make breakfast in a few hours."

"Oh," he mumbled releasing her and feeling stupid for asking. Of course she was going to bed, she could barely stand and looked ready to collapse at any moment.

She gave him a confused nod and began walking to her room, spooked because she hadn't heard or even noticed Liam following her the entire trek until she reached her door.

"What's wrong? Did you need another cover or something?" she asked entering her room and checking her phone for the time. "If you're hungry, help yourself to whatever's in the fridge."

"Nothing's wrong.."

"Then what is it?" She frowned getting under her covers, laying down on her bed and reveling in its softness. "I'm not gonna sing you to sleep, Liam."

Liam took a seat next to her body after she made a little room. "I just wanted to say thanks...For everything.."

She smiled and gave him a nod. "Yeah, no problem.." But Liam didn't get up like she thought he would, he continued to sit there and stare at her and she furrowed her brows together. "Liam, seriously, what's wrong? You keep staring at me and it's pretty damn hard trying to go to sleep when someone's sitting there watching you."

Liam took a deep breath in because he was gonna do it. He was just gonna do it.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being a sarcastic jerk to you and judging you...and Mr. Jimmy says hi by the way..I'm sorry for acting like you've done something to me when the only thing you've done is help me."

At this point Leigh-Anne was sitting up again and patting the side of Liam's face with a tiny smile. "Liam, it's alrig-"

"I'm sorry about the affair, I'm sorry about that kiss when you dropped me off, I don't even know why I did that. I'm so, so, sorry if you're pregnant and.."

Leigh-Anne was no longer smiling and her hand dropped from his face and his tickling facial hair. As much joy as she was finding in Liam's apology, she didn't want to talk about what they were going to do if she was carrying his baby. She needed a well rested mind if she was going to tackle this problem and she didn't have that going on right now.

"I think we should talk about that in the morning, Liam.."

"I do too," he agreed. "But I'm just so sorry.."

"Liam." She patted his shoulder so he would look at her. "We'll figure it out in the morning after breakfast, but for right now I think we both just need to go to sleep...Okay?"

"Okay... But I'm sorry.." he trailed off, looking over her shoulder at the headboard he remembered banging loudly against the wall.

Now he was frustrating her with his apologies. He had apologized for everything she thought he needed to, he didn't have to keep saying it.

"For what, Liam? What are you sorry for now?" she asked with a little attitude, she wanted to sleep and he was keeping her awake.

Liam's eyes caught hers and when she was going to snap at him for not answering her, he cupped the side of her face, leaned in and kissed her.

Oh... that, she thought when she closed her eyes and started pulling Liam down on top of her.

_x

First thing in the morning Leigh-Anne rolled over and bumped into a warm body.

A warm body that she knew there was no possibility of it being her fiancé and instead was Liam. The guy she had slept with twice now.

Quickly she got out of her California king bed and saw Liam stir slightly and then sigh heavily, her duvet covering just enough of his groin for her to want to wake him up with a blowjob. Somehow, and I mean somehow, she fought the urge to wake him up in the best possible way and grabbed her robe from the closet to throw on before she went to her kitchen.

Something was seriously wrong with her. This was twice now, twice that she had slept with this guy, and the only thing she could really say was that the sex was definitely better when she was sober. She was so aware of every move Liam made. His slow, deep thrusts, every lick of his tongue, his warm breath on her neck as he panted, his teeth that would bite here and there, and how he held both of her hands in his with intertwined fingers and didn't let go. Never in her life had the missionary position been so stimulating or satisfying.

Everything she needed to make a filling breakfast was out on her counter, prepped, and she had started scrambling the eggs when Liam exited her bedroom and headed towards the room where his daughter laid.

He glanced at Leigh-Anne on his way there and she quickly looked away. When she braved a glanced at Liam, he looked away. What was she supposed to say? "Sorry about last night, I had a relapse and needed some good dick"?

With a smile on his lips Liam was relieved to see Zoe still sound asleep, she had kicked off the covers and had a frown on her lips. Nothing out of the usual for her. He pulled the covers back over her little body, kissed her temple and brushed her small bangs out of her face. To think that he had made her, with some help of course, and how there was no way she could've come out any more adorable was beyond comprehension. She was the perfect blend of him and her mother, though if asked, everyone would say she was the mini girl version of him. What more could a dad want?

His hand left her face before he could accidentally wake her up. It was later in the day than he had planned to get up, he was always up no later than 8:30 in the morning to make sure Zoe was dressed, fed and in daycare on time. But he couldn't hide out in here all morning and there was a conversation that needed to be had between him and the engaged woman that he couldn't seem to keep his hands off of.

He thought she would be more resistant.

She wasn't.

He thought she would maybe slap him for kissing her again.

She didn't.

He thought he was going to leave her bed, take a quick shower to wash away his sins and sleep in the bed with his daughter when he finished with Leigh-Anne, instead she asked him to stay.

He did.

They even shared a cigarette.

He looked over his daughter one last time before shutting the door and walking back into the kitchen, she was still cooking and just in her silk robe.

"Something I can help with?" he asked, his voice was baritone deep and he passed it off as his morning voice.

Leigh-Anne had been so focused on not wanting to think about Liam and what she was going to say when the time finally came that she dropped the fork she was using on the floor in surprise.

"Sorry," he apologized quickly, bending over to pick up the utensil when she did.

Their hands brushed and both of them snatched their hands back for a moment, a moment later Liam had grabbed the fork and put it in her sink.

She was biting her lip, reliving how his hands roamed her body. Liam was a confident lover, his hands knew exactly where they wanted to go and when they got there they were skillful and relentless. Liam thought of how her small hands clawed at his back and gripped his arms when her orgasms were about to wash over her.

"Thanks," she mumbled going to a drawer to fetch another one.

They lapsed into a silence neither of them dared to break until Liam sighed loudly.

"Leigh-Anne," he said softly having a seat at her counter.

"Liam," she replied trying to avoid eye contact with him. Liam demanded that she keep her eyes open and look at him as he rocked into her body with sure strokes and she didn't want to think of that right now.

"Last night.."

"We don't have to talk about it." She didn't want to talk about it. The only good thing about it besides the shattering multiple orgasms he gave her, was that she remembered to make him wear a condom this time.

"Okay.." Liam said scratching the back of his head. "So... what are we gonna do about uh.."

"If I am.." And it ruins everything she's built for herself. "I'm gonna keep it."

"Why?" Liam blurted out and her eyes found his instantly.

"Why wouldn't I?" she challenged, wearing a frown on her lips.

Liam remembered those lips and how they slotted between his in what was probably the most sensual kisses he ever had in his life. Each time she started to moan too loudly he would cover her lips with his to shush her, he would've died if Zoe heard them and walked in on them like that.

"You're..you're getting married and who knows what's going to happen when he finally finds out. You're always busy and I..I already have Zoe," he explained looking away from her lips.

"You don't have to be involved if you don't want to, Liam. I won't make you... We would be okay." She had enough money to provide a comfortable lifestyle for the baby, and she had plenty of people to lean on if she needed help. She didn't need Liam to be there.

However, needs and wants were two different things.

"I would want to be there. I want to be there. But.." But how could he afford to raise another child when he was barely getting by with Zoe? How would this look to the rest of the world when the news gets out about her having an affair with him? A stripper? Sure maybe Leigh-Anne didn't care about his occupation but that didn't mean the world would follow suit. What would Harry do? What if she went into labor while she was somewhere around the world and he couldn't be there? What would the boys think about him having another baby? What would Danielle think? Would she be willing to be the Godmother of this child too? Oh God, what would Zoe think? How would she feel about becoming an older sister?

These were some of the questions frantically whirling around in Liam's mind.

"Then be there, Liam," she told him. "No one's going to stop you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boom, boom, boom, boom! I want you in my room. Let's spend the night together, from now until forever. Boom, boom, boom, boom! I wanna double boom. Let's spend the night together, together in my room.
> 
> Leigh knows Dani. It's happening. I'm making it happen.
> 
> Outtie xx


	6. 6

Leigh-Anne giggled into her hand after receiving a text and Harry was becoming increasingly irked by the sound of it, whenever she laughed his cheek would twitch. He had a long night and wasn't in the mood for anyone or anything right now, not even his bride-to-be and her adorably annoying giggles.

"Who are you texting?" he asked, trying to peer over her shoulder.

Leigh-Anne gracefully moved away from him, her phone safe from his prying verdant eyes as she answered, "Liam," and looking at Harry for a brief second, daring him to say something, before going back to her phone; she wished Harry would so she could slap him in the face.

It had been two days since she had seen Liam and she was shocked to find that she was kind of...happy. They shared a few kisses in the kitchen, a few laughs too, and as soon as things were about to start heating up again -because he had her trapped between him and the sink, his hands were in her robe playing with her, and she wasn't going to stop him- Zoe had found her way into the massive kitchen to ask what her Daddy was doing to the nice lady that watched her last night. The two adults played it off very well and it seemed like Zoe didn't suspect a thing, but Liam and Leigh-Anne exchanged glances, flirty smiles and knowing smirks while their eyes held mischief throughout their breakfast.

Leigh-Anne offered to let them stay longer if they wanted, she didn't have anything to do or anywhere to go and she enjoyed the company, though one of them always found an excuse to follow her down the corridor for a brief make out session that included heavy petting. When Zoe was occupied with her lunch, Liam and Leigh-Anne had managed to fit in a quickie in one of her rooms. Liam exited the room first after kissing her for the last time and made sure he looked rated G when he faced his daughter again, and Leigh-Anne exited after she saw how Liam ruined her hair and fixed it until it was once again presentable. Every opportunity they had to be close to each other they took and she didn't regret it.

The three of them watched a movie together, and by that I mean Zoe watched a movie while her father quietly made out behind her head and slipped his fingers into the willing woman seated beside him. Right before the movie was over Leigh-Anne had to take Liam's persistent fingers from her before she completely lost it for the second time, and when she did Liam tutted and called her a lightweight before licking her remnants from his digits. Her only reply was how he should remember that he kissed his daughter with that mouth, and instead of replying he kissed her, slipped his tongue in and pulled away with a grin just as Zoe turned her head and asked them a question about the movie.

It was secretly giving Leigh-Anne a thrill having someone, by her side and being able to just be herself and not being told what to do, how to do it, when to do it. But most importantly... Liam made her feel wanted.

She felt wanted by Harry only as a trophy that, if she was being honest, he really didn't deserve if he was cheating on her for however long, hadn't told her about it, and hadn't stopped either. Harry wanted her because she was physically beautiful, not because he thought her soul was beautiful. Harry did not want her the way she thought he should. He didn't hold her tight enough when she needed him to. He didn't stay home and snuggle with her under the covers just because. He didn't kiss her like he would never see her again. And lately, he's been missing the I love you too's and at this point she honestly believed that he didn't.

Harry did not love her anymore.

So part of her stopped caring about her ongoing affair with Liam, Harry was having one too and she thought that made them even. Leigh-Anne felt like a fool for ever believing that Harry would be faithful to her for the long run to begin with. Before they had started dating she saw how he behaved with the women he was with and didn't approve of his behavior one bit. Harry Styles didn't have relationships, he had a string of lovers and left a trail of broken hearts everywhere he went. He was the worlds most eligible and infamous bachelor that only cared about his money and how many notches he could put in his bedpost before he died.

So there finally came a day when she had to tell Harry about himself and set him straight. Some girl he had previously been with came barging into one of Leigh-Anne's photoshoots that Harry was overseeing, yelling and using every word of damnation for him and Leigh-Anne was embarrassed and this was the last straw. Harry was her manager and she thought that he was reflecting badly on her; he made her look unprofessional. How could she work with a guy when he constantly acted like a misogynistic womanizer? She pressed him for answers, by this time in her career there were other big names that would gladly work with her and conduct themselves better than Harry had been.

She asked him how he would feel if she started sleeping around and having enraged men interrupting their work and Harry admitted he didn't like the idea of it. Harry didn't like the idea for several reasons, when he realized that it wasn't a silly infatuation he had for her he wanted to bury it, bury it in multiple women so he wouldn't feel it any longer. He hadn't seen her with any guys since they started working together and he wanted to keep it that way. Harry felt like guys would only be a distraction and he needed Leigh-Anne focused and to bring her A-game at all times when she was working.

It took awhile but Harry slowly cut back on the number of women he dated until he was no longer in the media about it, and during that time his feelings about Leigh-Anne hit him full force and he could no longer deny what he felt for her. He didn't want to fight it any longer and decided that he would ask her out. She saw that he put in the effort to change himself and the way he treated her gender and liked that he actually listened to her; though she did threaten to leave him and that could be why.

Harry was perfect then.

He treated her the way he should've treated the other women he dated, but he didn't care for them the way he cared for Leigh-Anne. Harry was charming, kind, flirty, he was everything Leigh-Anne liked and she approved of this new Harry Styles. She didn't think he would change and she certainly didn't want him to.

But he did.

It might've taken him a few years, but he did.

"That bloke with the kid? You haven't finished planning the charity yet?"

"Nope." She laughed again at Liam's reply and walked away to grab the bag she had packed yesterday for their trip from the bedroom.

They were headed to Italy to see how her dress turned out and Leigh-Anne had a feeling that she wouldn't like it. Cher seemed nice and eager, a little too eager, to please Harry with her final product when they discussed her measurements on the day they had met. Leigh-Anne wondered if she was an old lover of his. Cher payed more attention to Harry and his demands for the dress than what Leigh-Anne would've preferred. He wanted diamonds embroidered into it and gold lace, Leigh-Anne just wanted a pretty dress. It didn't have to have an intricate design or cost thousands of dollars, their wedding wasn't about her dress, it was about her and Harry vowing to be together forever. She didn't care what dress she wore, she would wear a crop top with jeans and heels for all she cared.

...Why couldn't Harry enjoy the simple things?

Liam enjoyed simple things.

Liam knew that the little things in life that we take for granted are the most precious things we have. As much as he would love to travel the world with Zoe and show her that there was more than their crappy place he tried to call home, he was perfectly fine as long as he had his daughter by his side. He didn't mind staying in and doing nothing, though he hardly had the pleasure when he was such a busy guy. Liam would love to be a stay at home dad while someone else would bring home the bacon for him to cook, he loved his daughter and would choose spending more time with her over anything and anyone else. Liam only wanted to live humbly, raise his daughter the right way, and spend time with the people he loved. That's all he wanted and Leigh-Anne thought that maybe Harry could learn a thing or two from the guy.

"Ready?" she asked not looking up from her phone, they needed to get a move on so they could be there early that morning.

Harry eyed the one bag that hung from her shoulder, there was no way his things would fit in there with hers.

"Where's mine?"

"Hmm?" Leigh-Anne paused mid text and looked at him.

"Where's my bag? I texted you yesterday and told you to pack a bag for me so we wouldn't be late," Harry said. Something was off with her lately. Ever since the night he left her with Liam she had been a little more sassy than he was used to. Liam must've been a bad influence on her with his scruffy appearance and cheap clothes, she was acting like...one of those again.

"Did you?" She knew he did. He texted her at three in the afternoon with his demands and he didn't come home until this morning smelling like that putrid perfume again. "I must've forgotten. Oops.."

Something was definitely off with her, he decided. Leigh-Anne was being short with him and he knew when people were being short with him.

"Must be her monthly," he muttered bypassing her and going to their bedroom to throw a bag together quickly. He had stopped keeping up with her cycle for awhile now. Before, he knew it like the back on his hand, now he wasn't sure of when the last time she was on it. He spent so much time away from her that he didn't, and couldn't keep track of it anymore.

Leigh-Anne scoffed when he was out of sight, Harry literally sickened her.

"I'll be in the car!" she yelled to him and headed out the door as she pressed call on her phone.

"Shouldn't you be on an airplane? I thought they made you turn off your phones and no calls were allowed?" the voice on the other line asked before chuckling. "You shouldn't be calling me when you're around him anyways."

"True, but Harry's upset that I didn't pack his clothes for our little excursion to Italy and now he's doing it himself. So I should have plenty of time before we get to his jet to talk. Harry can't dress for shit if it isn't a suit and tie.. not that I'm complaining when he looks good in them," she said looking at the glove compartment door. There was a paper hanging out of it, it appeared to be a receipt, and she was curious, so she opened it to have a look.

"I'd probably look better in a suit than he does."

It was a receipt alright. With thousands of dollars worth of purchases for baby clothes, specifically for a baby boy. Leigh-Anne's face formed a thoughtful expression as she tried to think if any of Harry's friends were expecting a baby. None came to mind and these definitely couldn't be for the two of them. First she would have to get pregnant (if she wasn't already) and that would be very assuming on his part to think that she'd have a boy for him to plan so far ahead.

"Do you even own a suit, Liam?" she asked, still trying to think of Harry's closest friends that he would go out of his way to buy baby items for. They hadn't received any baby shower invitations recently either, the last shower they went to was Kim and Kanye's for North, the invitation was extended to her through Harry...from Kendall of course.

"Touché, Leigh. Touché," he said chuckling into the phone.

"Have you decided to come to the wedding?"

She reached further in the glove compartment and found more receipts for more baby related items, and after double checking the dates on them, these were all recent purchases.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Leigh," he replied unsurely.

"Why not?"

How many receipts were in there? She had five in her hand already, all from different stores, and Harry had even bought a $50,000 crib. What baby needed a crib that was more than an average citizens annual salary?

"It's just isn't a good idea." Liam didn't want to be a witness to the woman he'd been sleeping with recently marrying some unappreciative dick. He would get an impulse to jump up and say, "I object!" and ruin everything; and the world would either hate or love him for it.

"I think it is," she replied quickly, shoving the receipts back from whence they came when she spotted a grumpy looking Harry in the corner of her eye coming from their house. "Liam, I've gotta go..Harry's -"

"Yeah, he's coming," Liam muttered. "Text me when you land?"

"Yeah..You should really come, I'd appreciate it if you did," she whispered into the phone before Harry opened the door on the drivers side.

"I'll think about it."

"Okay, thank you so very much!" she said with fake enthusiasm so Harry wouldn't suspect anything, he'd think she was talking business with someone and just struck a deal. That was all he cared about anyways.

"You're welcome, Leigh-Anne," he said softly and hung up.

Liam looked down at his smiling daughter and patted the top of her head.

"What's wrong, Daddy?" Zoe asked when he didn't smile back.

Liam scooped her up in his arms and kissed her cheek. "Nothing's wrong, sweetheart. But I was just wondering... would you like to go to a wedding?"

_x

"What have you been eating?" Cher complained zipping up the side of her dress.

Leigh-Anne wanted to grab the woman's hair and throw her into the mirror she had been glaring at ever since Cher showed her the gown.

Nothing.

She'd been eating next to nothing for almost a month just to fit into a dress that she hated. She would eat one decent meal a day, if that, and then cut out all carbs and gluten for the rest of the day.

The dress was too big after her waist, the train was too long and it wasn't even white, it was a yellowish white color she couldn't name. It was hideous and Leigh-Anne knew she should have told Jade to go ahead making the dress that she had designed and that they both loved. It looked like she would be walking down the aisle in that crop top after all.

"Maybe you got my measurements wrong?" Leigh-Anne suggested when Cher started circling her.

"Impossible," she said dismissively, laying a hand on Leigh-Anne's stomach and pushing it inwards. "Suck in your gut," she demanded.

"Look, Cher, I can't suck it in anymore than I already am!" Leigh-Anne snapped at her. "I can barely breathe as it is!"

"Period bloating?"

"No." Leigh-Anne sighed. "Not for another week." Hopefully.

"Pregnant?" Cher guessed again.

"No," she repeated. Though she hadn't taken those pregnancy tests yet. She was so nervous and wanted someone to be there when she found out. Preferably Liam, he should be the first to know, but any of the girls would do.

"Then you're just fat. Harry mentioned liposuction, but if you can manage to lose five pounds before -"

"Cher?"

"Yeah?"

Leigh-Anne's eyes narrowed at the smaller woman. "Please get the fuck out of my sight and bring Harry in here."

Cher gasped, then scoffed while rolling her eyes. "Why I've never!" she complained. "You ungrateful, -"

"Yes, go ahead a finish your insult," she taunted. "I'm sure Harry would love to know what you think about his fiancé when he's not around." Cher had some choice words with her on the day they met and Leigh-Anne had some words of her own for her as well. But in front of Harry, Cher acted like nothing had happened and everything was alright.

Cher didn't respond, she muttered things under her breath as she went to retrieve the requested man.

"Bitch," Leigh-Anne said looking at her reflection and turning to the side. "I'm not wearing this. There's no way I'm wearing this."

She took a few pictures of herself and sent them to Jade. Maybe should could fix it or get started on something quickly; Leigh-Anne wanted to wipe her ass with this dress.

Leigh-Anne and Jade had talked it out about her affair and possible pregnancy and she apologized for not keeping Jade in the loop. She honestly thought Perrie would tell her before she had the chance to, Jade was always so busy and hated being disturbed when she was designing; she said it interrupted the flow of raw creativity when she had to stop to do something else. Leigh-Anne didn't mean for Jade to be upset with her, or for Jade to lose her bootycall with Liam's dark haired friend. She called Liam the same day to tell his friend that Jade was sorry for the way she acted, she really seemed to like him, and from what Jade had told Leigh-Anne they had a lot in common. Jade didn't want to leave things the way they were and would like to make amends with him if possible.

"Great designer that works out of Italy," my ass! Do you see this? She texted Liam, and sent him a picture of the atrocious gown she had on. She regretted it when he started cracking jokes about the way it made her look, they were sad, but very true.

She heard Harry groan loudly before she actually saw him.

"What is it now?" he asked and she slowly turned around to face him, forgot to mention that the dress was heavy.

"I'm not wearing this," she stated crossing her arms over her chest, glaring at the woman standing a behind him who was rolling her eyes.

Harry's nose scrunched up and he went to his fiancé's side. He lifted the material and inspected it, he lifted the train and tutted to himself.

"Cher, she's right. I expected better from you," he told the woman and Leigh-Anne began to smirk. "I trusted you to deliver, and deliver you did not. I let you use the finest materials to work with and this is what you give me in return? This is what you expect my wife to wear on our wedding day?"

Harry shook his head and rubbed his eyes, he hadn't slept very well on their flight to Italy. He and Leigh-Anne got into a quick dispute about last minute invitations when she said that Liam and his daughter were coming and how she wanted to have Dani as one of her bridesmaids. Liam did not say this, but Dani agreed to be a bridesmaid and said she would pay for the dress herself since Leigh-Anne had paid for everyone else's. Harry approved of Danielle, however, he didn't want Liam there, his daughter could attend though, he told her. Harry felt like the child shouldn't be punished for her fathers misfortune, Liam offended Harry in every way from the way Liam wore his hair, to his cologne, to his boots.

Harry was tired. He wanted to pick up the dress and retire to their little home in Milan until they took off again, but now he had to find someone else who could design something worthy of his bride in a matter of days. Harry was stressed.

"I thought we were good pals, Cher?" He tutted again and she looked down at the floor in embarrassment. "Leigh, you can take off the dress. We'll find someone else."

Leigh-Anne's hands couldn't get to the zipper fast enough.

When she was dressed again she met Harry at the door and linked their hands together because she should. He gave her a weak smile and kissed the back of her hand.

"Are you okay?" she asked seeing the paparazzi already waiting for them outside the door when they saw their driver start up the truck.

"I'm fine, just tired," Harry told her, automatically smiling harder when their bodyguards formed a protective circle around them and opened the door. Only after safely making it in their vehicle did Harry admit, "My back hurts and I have a headache."

"Are you going to lay down when we get to the house?" she wondered. "I was hoping we could go and -"

"I have to call around and find someone to make your dress. I don't have time to dilly-dally through Italy," he said and leaned his head on her shoulder for comfort.

She wanted to shove his head from her persons. Leigh-Anne thought dilly-dallying with the person you love was one of the best parts of being in love. They were in Italy! No, not Venice, but Milan was perfectly fine with her. It didn't matter where they were as long as they were together, right?

Her mind disagreed.

"Jade says that she can have it -"

Harry interrupted her with a tired groan. How many times did he have to tell her? "I don't want Jade to design -"

"But I do!" she shouted pushing his head away from her. "Jade's a designer! I want her to design my wedding dress. I want to wear her dress because I know it'll look the way I want it to!" she yelled. She wasn't going to wear any dress that wasn't Jade's and that was final. Yes, she would go as far as calling off the wedding if she didn't have a MadeByJade original on.

So fuck him and his headache.

"Leigh, please calm down," Harry muttered, clutching his head. He wasn't expecting her to begin shouting and pushing him.

"No! This whole wedding has been about you and what you want! What about what I want? Isn't the bride supposed to get what she wants? Have everything done the way she wants? You haven't let me have a say in anything! This is your wedding, not ours. Maybe you should wear a white dress and I'll wear the goddamn tux!"

"Leigh, that isn't true."

"Yes it is! I just...never mind!" She crossed her arms and turned away from him. It was useless talking to him when he never listened.

Leigh-Anne would use any excuse to call off the wedding at this point. His cheating. Her cheating. The dress. Basically them never seeing eye to eye on anything.

"What's wrong?" Harry reached out and touched her shoulder.

"Don't fucking touch me, Harry," she hissed, grabbing his hand roughly and removing it.

Harry rolled his eyes and turned away from her as well. Definitely her monthly, he thought.

Aside from Leigh-Anne's nails angrily tapping the screen of her phone, the remainder of the ride was spent in absolute silence. Harry was going to ask who exactly she was texting but when he opened his mouth, they had stopped and she bolted from the truck and into their house.

_x

Giving him the benefit of the doubt, Leigh-Anne could say that Harry was more attentive to her after she snapped at him in the truck.

She went straight to one of the bedrooms, there were eleven, though she wasn't quite sure why, and locked herself in it with her phone charger and some junk food she had one of their bodyguards pick up for her earlier. Leigh-Anne wanted to be as far away from Harry as possible but he wasn't having it after the first hour of her isolation from him. He came knocking on the bedroom door thinking she had enough time to cool down from whatever happened in the truck. He had to go to every room in the massive house but he finally found her towards the very back of it.

"Leigh...open the door, please," he pleaded softly, knocking on the door. "I'm sorry."

Her mind was screaming, fuck your apologies, as she ate her Snickers bar.

"Leigh, please.." She could hear him sigh loudly on his side of the door and then he jiggled the doorknob. "We..." Harry sighed again and she knew for a fact he had ran a hand through his hair. "We need to talk...Leigh, I'm sorry. I love you...Open the door."

Fickle heart, oh fickle heart. Why must you be so easily swayed?

Leigh-Anne quietly rose from the bed hoping Harry couldn't hear her and went to the door. Pressing her ear against it, she tried to listen in on what he was doing.

Harry knocked again.

"We've got to talk this out.." She heard him say before there was a soft thump against the door. "I love you."

She wanted to leave him out there to suffer, but she unlocked and opened the door just to have Harry fall backwards through it, she assumed he had been sitting with his back to the door and that soft thump was his head.

He grinned stupidly at her and laughed as he laid flat on his back. "I didn't think you would open the door."

She looked down at him and crossed her arms. "I could always close it." And that would hurt when he was laying directly in the way. It would hurt even more when she tried to slam it.

"Remember when we first moved into together and we had that one fight and you stayed in our room all day?" he asked, taking a stroll down memory lane. "You had all of your snacks in there and I had mine out here on the other side of the door as I waited for you to talk to me again." He pointed to the drinks and chips lined up neatly against the wall. "You were in there for 11 hours until you opened the door."

"And the only reason I opened it was because you called my mother!" she reminded him.

"I called her because I didn't want you to be angry anymore," he said trying to defend himself. Because Leigh-Anne was pissed with him over something he couldn't remember, but he was sure she had a right to be.

Harry got up and dusted himself off, she noticed he had changed out of his clothes and wore a t-shirt and sweatpants. He really didn't plan on leaving the house today it seemed. No dilly-dallying in Italy for him.

"Leigh, I'm sorry," he apologized, enveloping her in his arms and waiting for her to hug him back. "I love you."

He'd said it three times in less than 15 minutes, and she knew he didn't mean it, if he meant it he wouldn't be cheating on her. But when she said it and she was cheating on him...did that mean she didn't mean it too? She loved him. Love... Loved?

...What the hell were they doing? What was she doing? Why wouldn't he just come clean about his affair so she could come clean about hers? They could talk it out, get some couples therapy, and make their relationship work. They could fix this if they tried.

Leigh-Anne just refused to be the first one to admit to cheating, Harry cheated first so he needed to admit it first. The last thing she wanted was to confess and have him rub it in her face, make her feel like a terrible person and feel guilty about it. If he hadn't been acting the way he has and loving her, giving her the time and attention she wanted from him, she wouldn't have slept with Liam. She wouldn't have felt so insecure and depressed and she wouldn't have sought comfort from another man if he had been there. You can't seduce a person who's content, and neither of them seemed to be content with each other anymore.

Dammit! she thought, hugging him and fisting the back of his t-shirt as she began to sniffle, her eyes watering and then spilling over.

"Hey," he whispered rubbing her back. "Don't cry. I'm sorry. Jade can design your dress. Liam can come. We can change things to the way you want them, the colors, the location. Whatever you want. I love you, Leigh, and I just want you to be happy, okay?" He kissed her temple. "I know we're both stressed out but just think, in a few days we'll be married! We can't turn our backs on each other now."

His words, as nice as they were, and as much as she wanted to hear them before her bachelorette party, didn't stop her tears and they continued to soak his shirt. He was making her feel worse and she wished that he would call off the wedding so she wouldn't feel so badly about everything.

"Stop crying," he said squeezing her tightly. "Everything's going to be fine, okay?"

She nodded into his chest and let out a hiccup.

"You're going to make yourself ill," he warned with a chuckle and pulling away from her. "Be lazy with me today?" Harry asked giving her a shy lopsided smile.

Leigh-Anne nodded again and coughed.

"See? You've already made yourself sick," he teased, his fingers prodding into her sides and making her release a broken laugh.

"Take care of me?" was her request once he stopped tickling her.

"I'll take care of you, Leigh," Harry promised, pressing their foreheads together. "Always and forever."

_x

Harry stirred in his sleep when Leigh-Anne had tried untangling herself from his strong hold. Oh yes, Harry had taken very good care of her, and she had to say, that was one of his better performances.

Swearing under her breath she hoped the sound of her ringtone wouldn't wake her fiancé. She pried his arm from around her and desperately reached for her phone to silence it. Nothing, she decided, should ruin this moment she had with Harry. Like magic, as if time had rewinded itself and she and Harry had first started dating again, those feelings came flooding back. The Harry that promised to take care of her back then, years ago, was the Harry that made the same promise earlier that day and for a second, Leigh-Anne could see why she had fallen in love with him in the first place.

She looked at the caller ID and frowned. Not because she was unhappy with the person trying to reach her, but because her guilt was beginning to resurface. After such a magical ending to the day, how could it not when Liam's name and recent selfie showed on the screen of her phone?

"Hello?" she answered quietly, her eyes quickly going over to Harry.

Silently she grabbed the tshirt she had stripped Harry of hours ago and tugged it on over her head and letting it reach midthigh. She walked out the room so she wouldn't accidentally wake him and closed the door.

"Hey," Liam greeted.

"Hey... Is everything alright?" she asked becoming a little worried. Liam didn't call her late at night when he knew Harry would be around and it was making her panic. "Are you alright? Is Zoe alright?"

"Yeah, we're just fine."

She felt relieved after hearing his words. Leigh-Anne didn't want to come home to some tragedy.

"I was calling to tell you that Zoe and I are coming. I asked if she wanted to go and she said she'd love to see you in another one of your pretty dresses."

There was snickering in her ear and she knew it was because those pictures she had sent of Cher's dress were ghastly. No one could pull that dress off, no one. It was just an ugly ass dress that never should've left the design paper.

"Thankfully I won't be wearing that particular dress. Jade said she could whip up the one she had designed for me thus saving me the embarrassment," she explained.

There was shuffling before he replied.

He must be tucking Zoe in, she thought; Liam really was a good father.

"So you're still going through with it? Getting married?"

She frowned. "Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well.." Liam didn't think he really needed to tell her the things she already knew. Harry's cheating. Her cheating. Her possibly caring his child. Those were solid, concrete reasons for her not to get married and Liam thought that they should have been enough to call it off. He thought she would've changed her mind by now.

"Liam... I." She gulped and schooled her nerves, unwilling to let them get the best of her. "I know why I shouldn't. But it would be best if I did. It would be easier."

Marrying Harry was the right thing to do.

"Best for who? Easier for who?" Liam asked. His tone was edging towards being harsh and Leigh-Anne knew why.

"Best and easier for everyone," she explained in a soft voice, not wanting Liam to become upset. "We've been planning this. I've been waiting years for this. And if I'm..you know.. I know everything will be okay. Harry won't have a choice but to deal with it, and if he wants a divorce, I'll sign the papers and move on."

"You shouldn't do it," he said. He don't want her to.

"I'm going to at least try to make it work, Liam," she insisted. "Maybe Harry will understand and there won't be any need for a divorce."

"I don't -"

She heard him sigh and the sound of a door closing.

"You don't, what?" she asked. "Want me to get married to the guy I've been with for years? You don't want to see me happy? You don't want me to marry the guy I love?"

Liam scoffed. "Love? Are you crazy? What do you really know about love, Leigh-Anne? If he loved you he wouldn't be sleeping with someone else, and if you loved him, you wouldn't keep sleeping with me every chance you got."

Something within her snapped when he said this and she felt it. Her patience was gone. Who was he, a stripper, to tell her how she felt?

"Well I didn't exactly see you trying to stop me, Liam. You never try to talk some sense into me whenever you've got my legs wrapped around you or over your shoulders!" she hissed and looked at the bedroom door. "You say my name and moan about how good I am or how great I feel."

"That's not the point! You won't be happy with him, Leigh-Anne!"

"You don't know what makes me happy," she replied quickly. "Harry and I could be perfectly happy."

"Perfectly happy living a lie." Liam sighed again. "It's not worth it, pretending to be happy all the time... I've seen you be happy."

And he was right.

He had seen her genuinely happy and carefree like the way she had been before she met Harry. She laughed as loud as she wanted without fear of being reprimanded, and did silly things just to make Zoe laugh. Leigh-Anne liked simple things just the way he did and Liam knew, he knew that a life with Harry would not be so simple. The world would be watching their every move, waiting and spreading rumors to cause a riff between them. How could she be happy when there would be so many people praying for her unhappiness? Biding their time and waiting for her to slip up so they could attack and bring her down to her lowest point?

How could she be happy living like that? He wouldn't he happy living like that.

Liam wasn't suggesting that she break off the engagement and run away with him and his daughter so if she was pregnant, they could be one happy family, not at all. Making the best choice for her future and her happiness was all he cared about. He didn't want to see her be married and miserable. He had already witnessed how miserable she was while engaged and knew what the future held if she went along with this.

The best thing and the easiest thing to do was to cancel the wedding while they still had time and rethink everything. Wait until they knew if she was pregnant or not and have Harry and Leigh-Anne admit to cheating. That way, if they still wanted to, they could go into the wedding with clean consciences and no secrets.

Leigh-Anne rubbed her temple to will away the oncoming headache. Liam was trying to talk her out of it when she had just made up her mind that she was going to stick it out. She didn't need him in her ear voicing her doubts. If Harry awoke and continued being the Harry that promised to take care of her, she knew they would be fine.

"Liam, if you don't want to come to the wedding, fine. I'll have Danielle bring Zoe if she still wants to attend. I..I want you to be there. It would mean alot to me having you there. But I won't make you."

Because she knew that it would probably be hard to watch the woman who could be having your child, the woman you were having an affair with, the woman who your daughter had already taken a liking to, marry someone who was cheating on her.

Especially if you actually cared about her.

"I'm not coming."

____xx


	7. 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unedited.

"Why are you crying?" Perrie asked Leigh-Anne, gently dabbing her face with a tissue so her makeup didn't smudge. "You look so beautiful."

Leigh-Anne sniffled and nodded, smiling at her reflection. "It's happening." 

Perrie smiled too. "It is. And Jade's dress looks perfect on you. You look perfect, Leigh." Perrie felt her own eyes start to water. "Aw! I told myself I wouldn't cry!" she yelled, dabbing her own face.

Leigh-Anne chuckled and pulled Perrie close into a tight hug, still crying. "Pez... I'm getting married," she whispered in astonishment. "I'm going to be a wife.."

Perrie hugged Leigh-Anne back just as tightly until she felt her friends tears fall on her shoulder. 

"Leigh.." Perrie backed away to look at her friend. "What's wrong, really?" The blonde took a moment and looked over her friend quickly before leaning in again. "You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

Leigh-Anne shook her head. "No. I'm just...so happy," she replied softly. "I've been waiting so long and now the time's finally come." Suddenly she squealed and grasped Perrie's hands in hers. "Pez! I'm going to be Mrs. Harry Styles!"

"He could always be Mr. Leigh-Anne Pinnock," Perrie suggested and Leigh-Anne rolled her eyes.

"Are you sure I should wear my hair like this?" Leigh-Anne asked checking herself in the mirror again. 

"I'm sure... I think you just want me to keep telling you how beautiful and perfect you look," Perrie joked, pinching her friends butt. "That is going to be all over the Internet." 

"I think Jade did that on purpose," Leigh-Anne muttered. Her butt had never looked this amazing in a dress before. Jade's work was about to take off majorly and Leigh-Anne couldn't wait to celebrate with her. "Where is Jade? Or Jesy?" She had texted Danielle and she was getting Zoe ready.

There was a harsh knock on the door before someone burst in. "Did Someone call me?" Jesy asked, flipping her hair back from her face. She glared and turned to someone behind her when they muttered something. "Shut the fuck up," she sneered.

"Who are you talking to?" Leigh-Anne asked curiously. Not that Jesy wasn't always like that, but...damn. Even on Leigh-Anne's wedding day she couldn't reign it in?

Jesy cleared her throat and looked at her friend. "Leigh...we have a problem.."

"No! Don't say that word today.  You can say that after I'm married and after the reception is over. Not before," Leigh-Anne scolded.

The eldest woman sighed and shrugged, tugging roughly on the person still being hidden from sight. "Then what do you want me to do with him? He was causing a scene outside saying that he was invited and we all know that he wasn't."

Leigh-Anne's eyes narrowed sharply at the man dressed in a tux, recognizing him instantly. "What are you doing here?" she hissed. "Jesy, go get the security team."

Jesy scoffed and put her hand to her heart. "Leigh, I am your security team. Those fucktards were going let him in if I hadn't handled it... Harry's paying for this."

"He's paying you to do security?" 

"No, but he's about to," Jesy said seriously, yanking the man who hadn't spoken, by the collar. 

Perrie laughed into her hand while Leigh-Anne rolled her eyes. "...Can the two of you find my mom for me and bring her in here?"

Jesy and Perrie looked between one another. "You want us to leave you alone with him?"

Leigh-Anne nodded once, her lips pursed together, her eyes still locked on the man. 

"I can't do that," Jesy told her firmly. "No way."

"Yeah," Perrie agreed. 

"It'll be fine," Leigh-Anne said slowly, lying, and giving a huge, fake smile. 

"We should probably leave," Jesy whispered to the blonde beside her, letting the man loose. "Leigh's about to go psycho."

"He and I have to talk anyways, and I know he won't ruin the most important day of my life," she continued. "Right, Dad?"

_x

"Are they still in there?" Jade asked, looking between the other bridesmaids.

"Don't you hear them yelling, Jade?" Jesy replied, annoyed at Jade's stupid question. "She's gonna be late to her own wedding because now he wants to be her father again? Bullshit. We know what this is about."

Danielle sheepishly raised her hand. "And what is this about?"

Three pairs of eyes landed on her and Perrie spoke one word, "Money."

"Oh," Danielle muttered, her eyes now downcast. Leigh-Anne had told her about her father begging for money. She said she'd send him some every few months and how stupid she felt for doing it, though she hasn't sent any recently with her new surge of success.

Leigh-Anne's father had left her, her sisters and their mother three years before she met Harry and started modeling. He divorced her mom and said something about always fighting about financial issues. And after Leigh-Anne had finally gotten out there in the world, he called her, the first time in three years he had spoken to her, pleading for money because —surprise! She had two little brothers she had never met.

"And this makes it worse because Harry's mom is convinced that Leigh's only with him for the money," Jade explained. "They've been going back and forth about her signing a prenup since they got engaged. Leigh said she wouldn't because y'know, she loves Harry, and everything she is, is because of him."

Danielle's eyes squinted and her brows narrowed in confusion. "So Leigh's not concerned about taking Harry's money if they split, she's more concerned about...making him a lot of money?"

"She's his cash cow," Jesy said bluntly. "Harry never had this much money when he was single. It's when they got together when shit exploded. The world loves their relationship more than any favorite fictional relationship. Right now, she's almost at the peak of her popularity, and we all know Leigh, we know how great of a person she is and how big her heart is. Things are going to be amazing for her, the world is in love with her."

"If that's the case then she should get one," Danielle muttered. "She's making the big money and he's the one profiting from it."

"I almost agree with you, Dan, but then she'd have to get another manager."

"That's not hard," Danielle added in quickly.

"But it would be too suspicious," Jesy told her, finishing. "And if she and Harry were to split, she would get paid 100 lifetimes over."

"Sooo." Danielle was still confused. "Leigh's not with him for the money?"

"No," Jade answers her. "Not that all of us don't enjoy having money. Leigh's just doesn't care that much about it. Money has never impressed her."

"So..." And like a lightbulb. "Is Harry with her for the money?" Danielle gasped.

Jade, Perrie, and Jesy shrugged, noticing the silence coming from the room their best friend was in with her parents.

"Shit," Jesy swore, standing up from her seat, cracking her knuckles and neck. "She killed him. Worst timing to kill your father, Leigh. You should've waited until tomorrow, I would've helped you bury the body when my hangover subsided. Fuck."

The door opened and Leigh-Anne's mother stepped through first, giving all of them a sad smile and quickly excusing herself. Next, was Leigh-Anne's father who didn't acknowledge them. Lastly, came Leigh-Anne who was fanning her eyes as she sniffled. 

"What happened?" Perrie asked, rushing towards her when the others did so.

"What did he say?"

"Are you okay?"

"Want me to cut him?"

Leigh-Anne coughed into her hand, sniffled once, and Danielle gave her a tissue. "He's... He's going to walk me down the aisle."

"Why? I thought Des and Robin were walking you? I thought you wanted that 'Harry's side accepts me' thing?" Jesy asked.

"I do, but-but he's my dad," she said softly and reluctantly. "And he should be the one giving me away."

"And your dad is also a fuckface who left you, your mom and your sisters to start a new family, and he's a leech. Don't forget that," Jesy added. 

"Leigh, are you sure?" Jade wondered, ignoring Jesy.

"Of course I am!" Leigh-Anne smiled. "Can one of you tell Des and Robin about the change? I don't want any last minute confusion when it's actually happening."

"I'll do it," Danielle offered. She was beginning to feel awkward. She liked Leigh-Anne's other friends, but it was weird to be around them while they discussed her wedding. They all knew about her affair and they were going to act like it never happened? Carry on like she didn't cheat on Harry and could possibly be pregnant with Liam's baby? Danielle was hating being stuck in the middle of  Leigh-Anne and Liam, especially since he's the father to her goddaughter.

Danielle needed to talk to Liam.

"Okay... Any more questions? Because I really just want to get married," Leigh-Anne said and started giggling.

There was a moment of squealing because this was still happening. Their best friend was getting married. Another moment passed when they thought about the beginning of all of this and everything that lead up to this point. Like, when each of them first found out, the engagement party, and most importantly, the bachelorette party that changed everything. Then there was no more squealing. Just a thin layer of calm self control with a thick layer of sullen beneath it.

_x

"We did it," Harry whispered into her ear, quickly lacing their hands as they greeted their guests.

"I know. I can't believe it.." she replied, still dazed from it all.

Even with Harry's outrageous demands, their wedding was perfect. Every guest gasped when she finally made her appearance, her dress couldn't have looked better, and she felt so happy smiling and blushing as she and Harry made eye contact while her father walked her down the isle. 

Harry could tell that her father being there had shaken her up and he tried to ease her nerves by making silly faces, and wiggling his eyebrows suggestively until she reached him. Leigh-Anne tried not to laugh, and for a second she covered her face with her bouquet to recollect herself because wow, she was marrying that guy.

She had married that guy.

"Who's that?" Leigh-Anne whispered to Harry when another wave of guests came to greet them.

"Aunts and cousins," he answered, kissing her cheek, then smiling and hugging the people infront of him.

"I've never met them," she said lowly. 

"Des's family," Harry told her.

"Ah." She hadn't really met Des's family. "And after them? Who's that with her belly on swoll?" she joked.

Harry smirked when Leigh-Anne leaned in to hug one of his cousins.

"You'll see when she gets here."

Her stomach was huge, she looked like she could give birth any minute and it was the first thing Leigh-Anne looked at when the woman made it before them. She slipped up when she brought her hand to her own stomach and let her thumb rub it for a second until she stopped and realized what she was doing. And infront of hundreds of people, and -for goodness sake- the Kardashian-Jenner reality cameras. (She was going to talk to someone about that. She didn't sign for any cameras.)

"Hello," Leigh-Anne greeted with a smile. "Thanks for coming," she told the pregnant woman. Leigh-Anne's arms went around her and when she leaned in, she lost it.

This identified pregnant woman hugged her back quickly with a small smile on her lips and moved onto Harry who she hugged seconds longer than she should have. 

"Leigh, this is Kolina," Harry introduced and laughed when Kolina kissed his cheek.

"Harry's told me so much about you," the woman spoke. Leigh-Anne arched an eyebrow at her husband because she hadn't heard anything about Kolina. Kolina who had a Barbadian accent, who was beautiful and glowing from her pregnancy.

And who was also wearing Chanel No. 5.

The dots connected as quickly as Leigh-Anne's eyes darted from Kolina's face, to Harry's, to Kolina's stomach, and then Harry's face again. 

This is who Harry was cheating on her for? She could deal with Harry cheating on her, there was the little matter of Liam. But she couldn't deal with him cheating on her with a Barbadian beauty and having a family with her. With the exception of Rihanna, because that was his one pass, Harry had told her that she was the only Barbadian he ever wanted. Harry had told her that she was his Barbadian Queen and wouldn't dare look at another. And for some reason, that cut deeper than Kolina being pregnant. 

"Oh," Leigh-Anne said lamely. "Is it uh...a boy?"

"It is," Kolina confirmed excitedly, beaming and rubbing her stomach fondly before looking at Harry with an expression Leigh-Anne hated to see.

"Um." She bit her lip, took a deep breath, and it only made it worse. "Thanks for coming," Leigh-Anne said to her quickly before turning to Harry and murmuring, "I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" Harry asked her and looking at the long line of guests they hadn't greeted.

"Bathroom," she said, stepping away from him as her head started to spin. She needed some air.

"Hurry back." Harry gave her a kiss and smiled at her before she swiftly walked away and he turned his attention back to their guests.

Leigh-Anne tried hard not to cry on her way to, or while she was in the bathroom, and succeeded until she started to vomit into the toilet. She said a little prayer as she heaved so that she wouldn't get any on her dress, and started crying mid-heave because today was supposed to be the best day of her life. Instead, she had just met the woman Harry, her husband as of minutes ago, was sleeping with. Not only was the woman beautiful, another Barbadian, but she was pregnant. Heavily pregnant. Harry was cheating on her months ago.

She heaved again and felt a hand on her back, rubbing soothing patterns into the exposed skin. Leigh-Anne felt emotionally unstable, crying tears of agony on what should be the most joyous day of all. Why did it feel like her world just came to a screeching halt? Why did her chest burn so badly? Why couldn't she stop vomiting?? 

"Geez, what did you eat?" Leigh-Anne heard them say. She could tell it was meant to be a joke.

She wasn't laughing.

"Just leave me alone," she mumbled back when she had a moment to catch her breath. 

"So you can continue to cry and throw up your guts?" they asked. "I think I'll stay."

She looked up at them, her eyes glistening with tears and frowned. "Why are you even here, Liam? You said you weren't coming." And up until now she hadn't seen him.

"Well.."!Liam scratched his head. "Zoe really wanted me to come; she really likes you. She likes you even more now that she knows you and Dani are friends. Zoe thinks the three of you are going to have a big sleepover at your house." Liam chuckled. 

"But why are you here?" she asked again. "Dani had everything under control, you didn't have to come."

It was Liam's turn to frown. "I thought you wanted me here?" 

Niall, Louis, and Zayn were there too. She'd seen Louis and grimaced when she learned he was her mother's date today; her frisky mother was just too much.

"I did," she confessed, her eyes brimming with tears for a second and then spilling over. She sniffled, wiped her face and coughed into her hand. "But you said you weren't coming and I figured it was best if you didn't."

Liam sighed, telling himself not to get frustrated with her; it was still her wedding day. "Stop making these decisions for the both of us. You don't know what's best for me, alright?"

"But -"

"But you're pregnant and you just got married to a guy who isn't the father. I got it," Liam snapped. 

"I'm not preg-" when she heaved  mid sentence Liam rolled his eyes.

"Of course you're not pregnant," he said sarcastically. "You're just throwing up on your wedding day, two weeks after having alot of unprotected sex." 

Leigh-Anne groaned and continued to cry, and with her cries came confessions and apologies.

"She's here," she told Liam.

"Who's here?" he asked, kneeling beside her because the tone of her voice was so pitiful and broken, that he would have had to be a complete asshole not to. There were a lot of people at her wedding, a lot. There were so many celebrities in one place it's a miracle that everything went as smoothly as it did.

"The other woman," Leigh-Anne spat out. "And she's pregnant, Liam. She's so fucking pregnant that I'm sure her water is going to break before the reception is over. She's beautiful, fucking Barbadian, and she's-"

"It doesn't matter."

"Liam, how can you say it doesn't matter when she's here? She's rubbing it in my face everytime someone asks her how far along she is!" Leigh-Anne screeched.

Because he was there, too. He made eye contact with Harry one time so far and he gave him a nod before looking at his daughter who had started pointing at people and gasping because, "That was that one guy from that tv show."

"Because you still won, didn't you?" Liam clenched his jaw before saying, "You married Harry and she didn't. I don't know what kind of man Harry is besides weathy and stupid, but he still married you, didn't he? It counts. She can be pregnant, but you still win. This," he lifted her ring hand, "is your trophy."

"No, I don't," she replied, snatching her hand from his. "I still lose. She wins. She will always have apart of him and Harry won't let that go that easily. Plus she's fucking gorgeous!"

Liam grabbed Leigh-Anne firmly by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "And you're not? She can be pretty, but who is she? I don't even know who you're talking about, and I'm sure everyone else only thinks of her as that pregnant lady."

"Her name is -"

"I don't give a shit about what her name is," he cut in. "I don't care. What I care about is," Liam's gaze shifted to her stomach before going back to search Leigh-Anne's face, "you. You, Zoe and this." Liam laid a hand on her flat stomach and felt exactly the way he felt when he touched Sophia's stomach for the first time when she said she was pregnant with Zoe. 

"Liam, I...I.."

"You what?"

"I can't.." she whispered, breaking eye contact with him. 

"Can't what?" he asked, his heart speed up from the flood of nerves at what her answer could be.

Leigh-Anne sucked in a deep breath and looked at him. 

"I can't have this baby."

And that threw Liam for a loop. 

He thought she was going to say that she couldn't go back out there and try to enjoy the rest of her wedding. Or that she couldn't be married to Harry now that she's seen the other woman and wanted an annulment. 

"W-what? B-but you said -"

"Dammit, I know what I said, Liam!" she shouted. "But I can't. I'm sorry.."

Liam leaned away from her, his eyes turned cold and his mouth set in a hard line. He had spent the last few days accepting the fact that he was going to have another child and hoping it was a boy. He wanted this child, he was excited about it! She couldn't just decide not to have their baby because some woman was pregnant with her husbands baby. That had nothing to do with him. He was already in love with the thought of having another child and she couldn't take that away from him.

"You don't mean that," he whispered, letting his eyes and face soften into a warm and comforting expression. This wasn't her, it was her hormones, and he learned from Sophia's pregnancy that women will say the craziest things. "You're only saying that because you're emotional and there's a lot going on right now. It's okay." 

"I mean it, Liam," Leigh-Anne argued while the next fleet of tears racing down her face. Liam moved closer to her and have her a hug. "No! Don't hug me, Liam!" she said, but didn't struggle or try to push him away. "Go away!"

Liam shushed her and wiped her face. "It's going to be alright. We'll talk about this tomorrow, okay? I know there's a bunch of people out there still waiting to see you, so let's get you cleaned up. You'll be fine." Before he knew what he was doing, Liam had kissed her forehead twice, started pulling her to her feet, and looking for a toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash and some Kleenex. 

"Liam.." 

He smiled at her when he remembered what he forgot to tell her before he started vomiting. 

"You look beautiful, Leigh-Anne."

_x

"What took you so long?" Harry pouted, pulling out the chair next to him for her to sit down. "I was about to send a search party for you." AKA her bridesmaids. 

Danielle had seen Liam following Leigh-Anne and was going to go after the two of them, but Jesy stopped her. Jesy said to give them a few minutes because they had some things to discuss. 

She forced a laugh and her eyes went to the table Liam and his daughter were seated at. Zoe was looking around at the other guests, still amazed that Leigh-Anne knew so many people from TV, but Liam, he was looking solely at her. His gaze was so intense that Leigh-Anne shifted uncomfortably in her chair from it.

"Um.. Yeah.. Breakfast didn't sit well with me. I think it was the nerves," she told Harry after forcing herself to break eye contact with Liam.

"Are you feeling better now? Because we still have a lot of dancing to do," he reminded her.

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine." She smiled at him and waited for the reception to start.

Once again, it was perfect. All of the guests were enjoying themselves and loving the catered food. Everyone was having a great time on the dance floor, especially her uncoordinated husband who she suspected had too many drinks already. 

Leigh-Anne loved how Jade danced with Zayn in a slightly secluded corner with a blush that never left her face. When Leigh-Anne and Zayn made eye contact, he gave her a friendly smile before smirking and whispering something into Jade's ear that made her gasp, an slap his chest. The newly wed spotted Jesy and Niall sitting beside each other, she was laughing, but Niall's face was beet red. When she caught Jesy's attention, Jesy merely shrugged, and kissed Niall's cheek. Thanks to the tablecloths, Leigh-Anne couldn't see what Jesy's hand was doing to Niall underneath the table. Perrie was drunk out of her mind and dancing on every single guy on the dance floor and seemed to be hitting it off with some tan skinned guy with a fading blonde highlight in his hair; Leigh-Anne couldn't wait to tease her about that tomorrow. Her mother and Louis were...where were they?

Leigh-Anne excused herself from dancing with her nephew to look for them and regretted it when she found them making out. She felt and unpleaseant churn in her stomach and wondered if she could make it to the bathroom in time.

"You okay?" she heard in her ear, a hand on her back to steady her when she tilted unsteadily.

"Get away from me," she spat, moving away from him. 

"Leigh-Anne, please.." he begged, grabbing her arm.

"No, because I already don't want you here," she said lowly, glaring at him, and in the next second, wrapping her arms around him as if they were starting to dance and smiling at a guest who tapped her shoulder and said congratulations. "You shouldn't be here."

"I know, but -"

"How are Larron and Andre doing?" she asked, not wanting to hear his excuses, but continuing on dancing with him.

"Well, you would know if you -"

"Don't give me that shit, Dad," she hissed. "You have grandchildren that you don't even visit."

It took her by surprise when her father's grip on her tightened and he pulled her away from the crowd. "Like yours?" he muttered loud enough for only her to hear.

She yanked her body away from him. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't play dumb, Leigh-Anne, you're too smart for that. I overheard you talking to that guy with the kid over there," he said, and pointed towards where Liam was dancing with Zoe. 

"So you were eavesdropping?" 

"No, I was looking for you!" he said defending himself. 

"Bullshit!" 

"I wanted to ask if we were going to do the father-daughter dance together or if I was going to be left out and replaced," he explained. "I'm not here to ruin your day, Leigh-Anne."

"When why are you here?" she asked harshly. "Can't you see that you just being here is stressing me out?"

"I know and I understand," he said calmly. When he carded what little hair he had left and sighed, she knew why he was here.

Her eyes narrowed at him. "Un-fucking-believable! You came to my wedding just to ask for money?" Leigh-Anne scoffed. 

"No, I wanted to give you away like any father would with their daughter... But.."

"You disgust me, I hope you know that," she replied in a serious tone. "How much do you need this time? Another 25 grand?"

"More like 60..."

Leigh-Anne gasped. "What are you doing with all of the money I've been giving you? Clearly you're not saving it for a rainy day, or putting it away for Larron and Andre's college fund. So tell me where my money is going."

"Leigh-Anne..."

"Don't Leigh-Anne, me! I have a right to know what my money is being used for! Drugs? Alcohol? Hookers? Do I have some more secret siblings? Hmm? Answer me!" she yelled.

"Is there a problem?" Liam asked, stepping between Leigh-Anne and her father. Leigh-Anne was grateful for the intervention and stood behind Liam, holding onto the back of his tux. From across the room he could she that the two of them were having some sort of argument and she was going through enough. She didn't need another person to push her closer to the edge. Liam still wasn't sure if she was serious about not having their baby, he was only hoping she wasn't.

"Besides her being pregnant with your child and married to someone else, no. There's no problem. So if you'll excuse us, I was talking to my daughter," her father spat at Liam, looking around him to see her.

"It's pretty clear that she doesn't want to speak with you," Liam replied evenly. Not confirming or denying her father's statement. "I think you should leave."

"I'm her father!" 

Liam scoffed. "From what I hear you're not a very good one."

"Liam, stop.."

Liam looked over his shoulder and felt her hands shaking on his back.

"See? You've upset her again," Liam told him. "Let's go, Leigh-Anne."

"She and I were -"

"Dad," she whispered. "I'll call you tomorrow okay?"

Her father stood there and nodded dumbly. "Um..okay?"

"Let's go," she whispered to Liam. When they were completely alone, she asked, "Liam? What's wrong with me?"

"Nothing is wrong with you," he replied instantly.

"Then why am I so...angry? All day I've been feeling so bipolar. I think I've experienced every emotion there is today. I hate this!" she complained and looked to him for an answer.

"Well...either you have a lot of pent up feelings, or it's because of the baby." Liam looked around to make sure no one was listening. "I'm guessing it's the baby, and it'll be that for awhile so.."

"Fuck," she swore, covering her face. "I really need a drink." All of the alcohol and wine circulating around and she felt bad not being able to have a taste, brushing it off and saying that she didn't want to get drunk since Harry had already done that for the both of them.

Liam couldn't help himself, so he laughed. "No, you don't."

___xx


	8. 8

"Now that you're married, when are you going to get a real job?"

Leigh-Anne looked up from her plate at her mother-in-law and gasped, appalled at her question. "Excuse me?"

"Mum!" Harry scolded, and his mother, Anne, rolled her eyes and continued to play with the food on her plate.

"It's a legitimate question, Harry," she replied calmly. "She can't walk around in her knickers forever." She directed her attention back to Leigh-Anne. "So are you going to get a real job? Or are you going to become a housewife?"

"Anne, please," Robin said, then sighed. "Can't we just have a nice dinner as a family?"

"If only we were actually a family," Anne muttered under her breath. 

"Mum!" Harry said again, not believing his ears. 

He couldn't believe his mother was acting this way! He thought she would've been over this already and accepted the fact that he was marrying, and had married, Leigh-Anne. Leigh-Anne was her daughter-in-law now and she needed to start treating her better and stop talking to her any way that she wanted. If she liked it or not, they were a family. He should've corrected this from the start but he thought his mother would've gotten over it by now.

Leigh-Anne set her fork down on her plate, wiped her mouth with her napkin and excused herself from the table. She was sick of Harry's mother being here and always saying something she had no business saying. Modeling was nothing to be ashamed of and there was a lot more to the industry than people would like to think. It takes hardwork and dedication, and with her being a woman of color, she had to work twice as hard just to prove herself and get respect from everyone around her. So she wasn't about to let his mother talk down to her. She could've been some foreign wannabe model on Instagram. She could've been some stripper Harry met who wanted to trap him with a baby to secure her future. She could've been some woman who didn't give a rats ass about Harry and only stayed around for the perks. Leigh-Anne had a good head on her shoulders and was proud to be making her own money instead of leeching off of anyone, unlike her who constantly called Harry anytime something online or in a magazine caught her eye. (Funny how she and Harry both had a parasite for a parent.) 

"She won't even defend herself!" Anne said, then smirking and watching Leigh-Anne exit. "How could you marry someone who won't stand up for herself?" she wondered.

"Mum, Leigh-Anne argues with you all the time," Harry's sister, Gemma, pointed out. "She's probably tired of it. You're always talking down to her, Mum, and Leigh-Anne's a great person."

Anne scoffed.

"What is wrong with you?" Harry asked. Noisily scooting his chair back, he stood up from the table. 

"You better not be getting up to chase after her," Anne warned, her eyes turning cold as she looked at her son.

"She's my wife, of course I am," he replied, stuck in his mother's gaze.

"Harry, sit down," she ordered through gritted teeth.

"Mum, Harry needs to—"

"Gemma, shut up!" Anne's head snapped towards her daughter and her eyes narrowed into a sharp glare. "This isn't any of your business!"

Gemma looked down at her plate before looking at her father.

"Anne, calm down," Des said calmly. "Harry, go," he told his son with a confident nod. 

Harry gave his mother one last glance before excusing himself and went after Leigh-Anne. He knew she had gone to their bedroom, she always did when she needed to cool down and get away from his mother.

"Leigh?" he asked tentatively and knocking so she wouldn't be startled. Harry opened the door to see his wife agressively packing a suitcase. "What are you doing?"

"I'm leaving. I'll be back when your mother's gone," she told him, stopping towards the dresser to grab a handful of underwear, socks and bras. 

"You can't leave, Leigh-Anne!"

"I'm not staying in this house with her, Harry. Every chance she gets she's trying to belittle me and I'm not going to do this anymore," she explained. "I tried to be patient and understanding about it when we first started dating, but after two years she still didn't stop. It didn't stop when we got engaged and she hasn't stopped now that we're married. I'm your wife now, Harry, I deserve some damn respect regardless if she likes me or not! I have always respected the fact that she was your mother. Always! When we would argue it was just me defending myself, and I would never say anything disrespectful to her. So I'm leaving."

Leigh-Anne went into their bathroom and packed herself a toiletry bag and Harry followed.

"But we have all of this stuff planned and—"

Leigh-Anne's bitter laugh interrupted him. "Harry, cut it out." She gave him a light shove so he'd move out of her way, he was blocking the door. "We both know that she doesn't want me there with you guys during your 'family activities'," she said making quotation marks with her hands before laughing again and tossing her toiletry bag into the suitcase. "I'll make time later this year to either fly Des, Gemma, and Robin back here, or fly out there so we can catch up. Clearly now isn't a good time for your mom, she has her own mess to sort out and she wants to take it out on me and I'm not going to let her."

Harry just wanted to spend time with his family, he didn't think that was asking too much, right? His normally hectic schedule was cleared so the six of them could bond before he and Leigh-Anne set off on their honeymoon. Things weren't going according to plan at all. He had just gotten married to the most beautiful and phenomenal woman he'd ever met in his life and now she was leaving because of his mother.

"I'll probably be at Dani's," Leigh-Anne told him, walking to her shoe closet. "She was acting a little strange during the wedding and I want to make sure she's alrig—"

And then her words finally sunk in.

"What did you mean by she has her own mess to sort out?" Harry wondered. "She hasn't called to tell me she needed any help or anything."

Leigh-Anne had grabbed two pairs of heels with one hand and some sneakers with the other when she looked over her shoulder at her husband. He honestly had no idea what she was talking about? She stood up straight and gently tossed her shoes towards the suitcase and walked over to Harry, wrapping an arm around him, the other going to cup his face. 

Harry leaned into her touch, turning his face to kiss the inside of her hand, his eyes locked onto hers to get an answer. His long arms had went around her frame and his hands laid gently on her backside.

"Harry, you can't help her with everything, you know that, right?" she asked him softly. She was searching his face only to see that he really didn't have a clue what she was talking about and instantly knew it wasn't her place to tell him.

"Leigh, she's my mum. I'm going to help her with everything I can," he replied dutifully.

She sighed and looked down at his chest for a moment, reminding herself once again, that it wasn't her place. 

"I think you should talk to her about her problems," Leigh-Anne suggested. "I'd try, but we both know she wouldn't listen to me anyways." She smiled at him a little, patting his face and pulling away from him.

"You're not saying what the problem is, Leigh-Anne! If there's something wrong with her I think I should know!" he said impatiently. He was mentally scratching off some things on a list of hypothetical problems.

Leigh-Anne packed away her shoes and didn't answer. 'It's not my place. It's not my place,' she thought quickly, zipping up the heavy suitcase and pulling it off the bed.

She tugged it behind her and walked straight up to Harry, giving him another hug which he returned immediately. "I think you should talk to Gemma," she whispered in his ear. "I think you should sit down and talk to all of them, and what better time then now while they're all here?"

Gemma was the one who had told her. His older sister called her crying and freaking out months ago and Leigh-Anne had taken his jet and flown to her the next morning without him knowing. He had called her when he saw she wasn't at home and she lied saying it was a last minute job overseas and would be back in a few days. 

"I don't even know what you're talking about," he uttered lowly, taking in the smell of her perfume, and running his hand up and down her back. Of course he didn't want her to leave, but their house always turned into a war zone whenever she and his mother were in the same room for too long so he understood. Harry also knew that Leigh-Anne would never ask him to kick his mother out, either. He was honestly surprised his mother hadn't objected when she was given the opportunity to during the ceremony. 

Leigh-Anne looked up at him and squeezed him tighter. 

"I love you, Harry."

"I love you, too, Leigh," he replied immediately. She was scaring him, any moment now he was expecting her to tell him that his mother had the dreaded C-word. "Always," he added.

She leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on his lips. "I'll be back the night before they leave," she promised against them.

"Just...just tell me what's wrong with her," he pleaded, kissing her back. "You don't have to go."

"I do. Bringing this up is going to be another reason for her to hate me," Leigh-Anne muttered, loosening her hold on him and grabbing her luggage once again.

Harry was dumbfounded as she walked passed him and to the bedroom door.

"So you're not going to tell me?" 

She stopped walking and chewed her bottom lip, debating if she should or not. It wasn't her business and Gemma confided in her because she knew Harry wouldn't take it very well, especially during the time Gemma made the discovery herself. Leigh-Anne thought Gemma would've told her brother by now.

"Leigh-Anne?!" he said loudly.

"She's sleeping with your father again," she blurted out and watched his face go from shocked, to confused, to hurt, and she already regretted opening her mouth when his expression circled back to hurt for the second time. "I'm sorry," she mumbled and slipped out of the door.

_x

"Can. You. Just. Stop. Moving?!" Liam half-yelled at Zoe with every stroke of his hand as she twisted and turned in his lap as he tried to brush her hair. He was attempting to do it and she wouldn't keep still for the life of her. He already wasn't in the mood and Danielle wasn't answering any of his calls.

"Sorry, Daddy." She sniffled and swiped at her eyes. "It just kinda hurts. You're pulling too hard."

Liam sighed and put the brush down. He was a wreck. He was a stressed out wreck and had been since the wedding.

"I'm sorry, Zoe," he apologized hugging his daughter close. "Daddy's been a little—"

"Sad?" she asked, turning to lay on his chest comfortably so she could look up at him.

He smiled down at her and patted her head. How she managed to undo all of those twists and braids in her sleep he would never know. He thought they would last a more few days, but she was good at proving him wrong. He needed to make a note to remind himself to pick up a scarf or sleeping bonnet to put her hair in. Then he snorted to himself because she was such a rough sleeper that some flimsy fabric on her head didn't stand a chance.

"Yeah, Daddy's been a little sad," he confessed.

"Why are you sad?" she wondered curling more into him.

"Because, Daddy.." He messed up. He messed up big time and wasn't as ready as he wanted himself to believe for the consequences. "Because... sometimes being a grown up is hard," he answered softly.

"I don't wanna be a grown up," Zoe muttered, playing with her father's shirt. 

"Being a grown up isn't that bad," he assured her. "You just have to –you have to do the right things and make sure you make time to have fun and surround yourself with people who care about you. Because sometimes it's not fun, and you might need help from someone who will make you smile."

"Like Auntie Dani?" Because Auntie Dani always found ways to make her smile.

"Yeah, like Auntie Dani." He nodded.

"Or Uncle Zayn?" Because Uncle Zayn always spoiled her with things that made her happy.

"Or Uncle Zayn," he repeated.

"What about Miss Leigh-Anne?" she asked and caught him off guard. Zoe saw how her father didn't answer her right away, he bit the corner of his lip while looking away and she felt like she needed to explain why she picked the newlywed woman. "Because she watched me when Auntie Dani couldn't? She was really nice and she's really good at doing girly stuff. Plus we had a lot of fun at her house when you came back from work?"

"Yeah, Miss Leigh-Anne, too." 

He was trying his hardest and doing everything he could to keep her off his mind. He was tempted to text her and ask her how she was feeling, if she handled things with her father, and how her marriage was going. He told her at the reception that he would talk to her the next day but he just couldn't bring himself to call her; he noted that she didn't call him either.

Liam grimaced. He still couldn't believe she went through with it, but she did look amazing in her dress. Every photo and video recording of her that came out on TV or social media was stunning. She made headlines and he knew their marriage would be all anyone ever talked about for awhile. How could they not? She was beautiful and they looked...happy.

He wished he could've talked her out of getting married. Not because he wanted a relationship with her —he couldn't imagine a relationship with the media always in their business— but because he did care about her to a small degree and he could tell that she was still unsure about Harry. She knew he was already cheating on her and was absolutely positive that he had gotten that other woman pregnant and unfortunately, it was after they had said "I do." He doubted she would leave him even if Harry did come clean, her guilt about their affair would make her stay if nothing else would.

"Can I go over her house to play soon?" Zoe asked again, tugging on her fathers shirt when he didn't answer her the first time.

"Ahh.." He hesitated. That probably wasn't a good idea. "I'd have to call and see, Zoe. She's probably really busy and it wouldn't be fair to her family to make time for you to come over for a play date."

"Oh," Zoe muttered. "But she likes me, right?" She was good that night even though she almost said a bad word and the lamp they broke. Miss Leigh-Anne didn't have a reason to not like her, right?

"Of course she likes you!" Liam reassured quickly. "How could she not like you? You're smart," he poked her side and she giggled, "and awesome," he poked her other side, "and just so cute!" 

"She thinks we're cute." Zoe giggled again when Liam gently pulled on one of her ponytails. 

"Of course we're cute." Liam scoffed playfully. "Just look at me, Zoe!" He flexed his biceps and posed before bringing a hand down over his face, cupping his chin and turning his head from side to side, his eyes half closed for a smoldering effect. "You get all of your good looks from me!" he boasted before grinning, his little look-a-like laughing at his antics.

"Call her," Zoe insisted, poking the pocket she knew his phone was in.

"Later, Zoe." 

"Daddy, call Miss Leigh-Anne." Zoe poked his pocket again. "I want to ask her something."

"Ask her what?" 

"If I can come over? Or if she could come over here?" 

Liam knew he shouldn't have laughed, but he did. He couldn't picture Leigh-Anne Pinnock— excuse him, Leigh-Anne Pinnock-Styles in his shabby home playing games and doing his daughters hair. It would be so odd to have this huge celebrity that was used to such glamour things at her fingertips sit on a couch that was older than Zoe and had stains he couldn't identify. 

Fuck. He slept with a celebrity. A now married celebrity. 

"Zoe," he said sternly. "She's busy."

She stuck her bottom lip out and furrowed her eyebrows. "How do you know if you haven't called her?"

He gave his daughter a look and Zoe knew that look. That was the look that meant she was making him upset and she didn't want her Daddy to be upset with her.

He didn't want to speak to her just yet. Thinking about her worried him enough and trying to keep her off his mind only worked so well. Whenever he spoke to her he wanted to have a clear head so they could talk about this situation. She still didn't say if she was seriously going to have the abortion or not. At the reception her took her words about it with a grain of salt. There was a lot going on with so many guests there, her emotions were high and her father showing up had shaken her up. He didn't expect her to mean what she said that night, they still needed to talk this through.

"Well, can you at least call Auntie Dani again and see if she answers?" Zoe didn't want her Daddy to keep pulling on her hair, it really did hurt and her Auntie Dani never made her head hurt when she did her hair.

Liam sighed and fished his phone from his pocket. "Yeah. I'll try her one more time." He went to his call log and pressed her name then the call button.

_x

"Why won't you answer your phone?" Leigh-Anne asked curiously. They were in Danielle's living room lounging on her couch while her TV was on and her phone kept ringing and ringing; she enjoyed her ringtone though. "Whoever it is will probably keep calling until you answer it."

"It's Liam," Danielle told her when it went to voicemail; she had been avoiding his calls since the wedding. This situation with him and Leigh-Anne was really getting the best of her and she knew it shouldn't be. Leigh-Anne was married and Liam was...he was calling her again.

Leigh-Anne groaned. "What if it's an emergency? Just answer the phone!" she snapped. "If you're not answering his call for my sake, don't. I don't care."

Danielle was acting so off. When she arrived at her house the leggy brunette didn't seem very excited to see her and made Leigh-Anne feel like she was intruding. However, when she offered to leave and go to Perrie's house or stay at a hotel, Danielle apologized but continued to give off these weird vibes.

"No, you're not the reason why I'm not answering his calls," she fibbed.

"Then what is it?" Leigh-Anne's brows came together in confusion. "What's wrong, D? Are the two of you, like, fighting or something?"

"No, we're fine," Danielle answered truthfully. "I uh, just um...have you taken those pregnancy tests yet?" she asked, hoping that it didn't seem like she had changed the subject too abruptly.

Leigh-Anne sighed and leaned back onto the couch tiredly with her eyes shut.

"No. I'm too scared, D," she admitted quietly. "I'm terrified. What if I'm pregnant? I told Liam at the wedding that I couldn't go through with it and was going to get an abortion. But when I think about it, I don't think I can do it." She laid both hands on her stomach.

Danielle frowned. "There's nothing to be scared of, Leigh."

"There's everything to be scared of!" Leigh-Anne corrected. "What about my marriage? What about my career? What about my image? What about Liam and Zoe? What will my family think? What will his family think?" she asked hurriedly. "This baby will ruin me."

Danielle laughed lightly. "Babies didn't ruin Giselle."

"But Giselle didn't cheat on Tom at her bachelorette party either," Leigh-Anne snapped. Why wasn't she taking this seriously? Why didn't Danielle understand what this would mean for her? "Liam already has a child and I don't want to complicate his life with another one."

"But what if you're not pregnant? Everything will be fine, right?" 

"Wrong." Leigh-Anne opened her eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling. "I still have to tell Harry that I slept with Liam." And he was going to hate her.

"You don't have to tell him," Danielle pointed out. "It's not like he's come clean about his affair."

"But I still have to tell him."

"No, Leigh, you don't," Danielle argued. "I think you should tell him only if he tells you first."

"I should but...but I don't know! I just wish I never did it. I wish I never slept with Liam that night and I wish I didn't keep sleeping with him after that night," Leigh-Anne admitted and clenched her legs together. But dammit if sex with Liam was fucking great. Just thinking about their romps was getting her horny enough to text Harry and tell him to meet her at a hotel for some "Shawty Swing Through" sex as Jesy liked to call it.

Danielle could empathize, Liam was a fantastic lover. He was very attentive to her needs and went above and beyond to make sure she enjoyed every moment. There wasn't a time that he didn't have her grabbing onto something so hard that her knuckles started turning white; he was the perfect lover in her book.

Her phone began to ring again and she stared at her screen and thought about answering it. Since she found out about Leigh-Anne cheating on Harry with Liam, Danielle had been feeling differently. She'd never thought much about Liam being in a relationship besides them being together forever ago and him being with Zoe's mother until she abandoned them. Danielle didn't consider what Leigh-Anne and Liam had even a relationship but they had relations and those relations could possibly have bonded them for life. She wasn't sure if she was ready for that. 

Danielle didn't feel jealous of Leigh-Anne, she was going through a lot, too much was happening and there was plenty to think about. But she might've been feeling possessive? Yeah, she could say she was a bit possessive of Liam. Since Zoe was born, as far as she knew, she was the only woman Liam talked to with regularly. They talked or texted each other all the time, leaned on each other when they needed someone to be there, all of that. Oddly enough, after that day she lightly scolded him about not coming home when the babysitter had scared her half to death, she felt like he had started to distance himself from her.

And the only thing that had changed between them was him sleeping with Leigh-Anne.

It went to voicemail again and Leigh-Anne had rolled her eyes and sighed. What if something had happened to Zoe? Was Danielle really going to ignore his phone calls?

"If you're not going to answer the phone at least text him," Leigh-Anne suggested. "Make sure the two of them are okay and don't need anything."

Danielle almost snapped at her and said if she cared so much then she should call him and make sure they were okay.

"It's probably nothing," Danielle said dismissively, attempting to calm herself down. She had managed to make herself angry from thinking about this situation. "He would've texted me if it was really important."

Right? He would text her if something was wrong? 'Yeah. Of course he would,' she told herself, feeling silly that she would even doubt it. Liam didn't have many options when it came to reliable people and she was always the first person he called.

Leigh-Anne's phone rested on her friends coffee table facedown and it began to flash. She assumed it was Harry texting her that his mother was pissed about her telling him her little secret. Or maybe it was Jade telling her about the sweetest thing Zayn had done for her now —Leigh-Anne was positive that those two would be together for along while. 

She was wrong seeing a text from Liam apologizing for not calling her the day after the wedding like he said he would, asking if Danielle was okay and if there was any way she could get in touch with her because she wouldn't answer the phone when he called.

"See what you did?!" Leigh-Anne hissed at her, panicking and standing from her couch. "He just texted me!" 

She wasn't ready to talk to him. After she had taken the pregnancy tests she promised herself that she would call him and tell him the results. Talking to him right now because the person still seated on the couch was ignoring his calls wasn't what she had planned on doing. Danielle said that they were okay, how okay could they be if Liam had to text her to see if Danielle was alright?

"You?" was the snarky reply and yes, Leigh-Anne noticed the attitude Danielle forgot to keep out of her voice.

"Yes, me. You were ignoring him and made him text me!"

Danielle rolled her eyes at her friends distressed state and once again, Leigh-Anne noticed it. 

"Whatever. What did he say?" Danielle wondered, uninterested and upset that he hadn't texted her and chose to text Leigh-Anne.

Leigh-Anne narrowed her eyes and cleared her throat. "'Hey, I'm sorry I didn't call the next day to talk,'" she read. "'But I was wondering if Dani was alright and why she suddenly started acting like a bitch,'" she lied making Danielle gasp loudly. The newlywed went towards the room her suitcase was in and was going to grab it and go; she didn't need this right now. She needed Danielle to be her best friend, comfort her and make her feel better, not make her feel worse.

She knew something was up with Danielle but she didn't think that Danielle would act this way over some guy. If Leigh-Anne had known that Liam was her ex she wouldn't have slept with him that night; she would've been greedy and slept with Zayn instead. She thought that Danielle trusted her enough to say that her short lived affair with Liam was bothering her so they could talk it out. Not take it out on her when she needed her.

"He did not say that!" she heard yelled from the living room seconds later when Danielle figured out that Liam didn't text her that.

Leigh-Anne closed the bedroom door behind her and tried to walk passed Danielle and out of her house without speaking.

It didn't work.

Danielle stepped infront of her blocking her door.

"Where are you going?" the taller of the two asked. "Put your stuff back in the room, you're not going anywhere."

"Move so I can leave," Leigh-Anne demanded, trying to walk around her friend but getting blocked again. "Danielle, move!"

Leigh-Anne was not afraid to physically move her friend out of her way.

"No!" she shouted. "I'm sorry!" she apologized. "Leigh, you don't have to leave. Where are you going to go? Just stay."

"I'll stay in a hotel." She should've done that in the first place instead of checking on her friend to see if everything was alright with her.

"Leigh, no. I'm sorry," Danielle apologized again. "It's just really weird for me, alright?" she confessed. She still needed awhile to process this. All of Leigh-Anne's other friends had acted completely normal at her wedding about it while she felt uneasy the entire time.

Leigh-Anne felt her face soften and she sighed. "That's all you had to say, Dani," she whispered back. "And I'm sorry if you feel like you're in the middle of this."

Because it was her fault. The night she was babysitting for Liam and she discovered that she was Zoe's "Auntie Dani" she shouldn't have texted her. Leigh-Anne didn't think anything of it and that was insensitive on her part. She put her in the middle of her possible pregnancy with her ex, the father of her goddaughter, and Leigh-Anne was sorry.

"I'll be fine, Leigh. It's just...awkward." Danielle grinned, it was small and earnest. "Liam's always been a great guy and you've always been a great woman. Things are just really complicated between the two of you and I don't want either of you to end up hurt."

Leigh-Anne huffed and took her hand off the handle of her suitcase to hug her friend. Danielle was good. She didn't mean any harm. 

Danielle hugged Leigh-Anne back and sighed into her hair. "I think you should take those pregnancy tests," she reasoned. "The sooner we know the sooner we can figure out what to do."

Leigh-Anne pulled away and nodded. "You're right."

"You should probably text Liam back first though. He might think we're dead," Danielle joked. She reached out and grabbed Leigh-Anne's suitcase and started pulling it back towards the room Leigh-Anne was staying in, missing how she tried to smile at the joke but how the tightness around her eyes betrayed her.

Leigh-Anne was half way through her text message when she saw that he had decided to call her and it made her squeak in surprise. 

"H-hello?" she stuttered and internally groaned at herself.

"Hey," Liam replied.

Silence stretched between them, both of them wished that it didn't feel so tense. 

"Did you get my text?"

"Oh, yeah. I was in the middle of texting you back...Um." She paused and decided that she was behaving childishly. "Danielle is fine, I'm at her house now, actually. I'm staying over for a few days."

That wasn't what Liam had expected to hear at all. He was taking a risk by calling her and he had prayed that he didn't call and interrupt her plans. It took everything in him not to ask her why she wasn't with her husband and his family; it wasn't any of his business.

"Well, I was wondering if she could come over and do Zoe's hair if you two aren't busy? I feel terrible because I think I'm making it worse and knotting it," Liam explained. "Danielle knows how I am when it comes to doing her hair."

"We're not busy," Leigh-Anne answered. The pregnancy tests could wait another few hours when she wasn't in a rush to pee on a stick and stare at it. "I'm sure she can stop by and do something to it of you haven't knotted and ripped all of it out of her poor little head," Leigh-Anne teased making Liam smile.

"To be honest, I think Zoe might want to cut her hair off. She made me promise not to touch her head anymore today," he teased back, enjoying how she was trying to keep things light. As if they didn't have something a tad more important to discuss.

Leigh-Anne tutted. "That poor child. I'll ask Danielle about fixing your mess when she comes back." She must've gone to the bathroom, Leigh-Anne concluded; it didn't take that long to put a suitcase in a room.

"You can come too," Liam offered, smacking himself in the face afterwards. 

"Oh..I um.." He wanted her to come over too? She was content with sitting by herself in Danielle's home until she got back.

"I mean, unless you have something else to do? You don't have to—"

"Okay," Leigh-Anne interjected quickly. "I'll come."

_x

"See? All done!" Danielle announced when she finished the last braid in Zoe's hair. "You look adorable," she complimented. "No thanks to your Daddy of course!" she shouted loud enough for him to hear from his place in the kitchen.

"Shut it, Dani!" he yelled back. What could've possibly possessed him to ask Leigh-Anne over? From the moment she stepped into his house he felt like she was judging every detail of it. He knew she wasn't like that, but that didn't stop him from feeling insecure about it. Even now he could swear she was boring holes in his back as he bent over, digging a bottle of water out of his fridge for her.

"So," she said awkwardly from his kitchen table. "What's for dinner?" 

He closed the door with his elbow and shrugged. "I haven't decided yet," he answered truthfully, placing her water bottle in front of her.

"How about pizza?" Leigh-Anne offered, twisting the cap off and taking a small sip. "My treat?"

"That would be nice but we're fine," he said denying himself something he hadn't eaten in awhile. Pizza did sound good right about now, anything he didn't have to cook sounded good.

"Liam," Leigh-Anne muttered, capping the bottle back. "Stop that."

One of Liam's thick eyebrows quirked upwards. "Stop what?"

"Being stubborn. Just let me order pizza," she told him and rolled her eyes. This reminded her of when they first slept together and he didn't want to accept Harry's clothes or the ride home.

He was going to deny it, he wasn't being stubborn at all, he just didn't want her to —yeah, okay, maybe he was being a little stubborn. It slipped his mind that there was a possibility that she might be craving pizza. They really needed to start seeing eye to eye on things or co-parenting was going to be difficult.

"Okay, order pizza," he conceded. "Any kind is fine, Zoe's in that phase where she takes the cheese off anyways."

"Great," she cheered. She couldn't remember the last time she had pizza, all of this dieting for the wedding had practically killed her. "I guess I'll get a regular pepperoni pizza then."

"Maybe after we eat can talk about about...you know," Liam hinted, his eyes dropped down to her stomach for a brief moment just in case she didn't understand what he was getting at. "Do you know officially?"

"I haven't taken the tests yet, I've been too scared. But I brought them with me when I decided I'd come over, they're in my purse. I thought it would be easier to get it out of the way with you here," she told him. 

Liam could see the nervousness all over her face and he wanted to reach for her and smooth her worries outs. They were going to be perfectly fine and he needed her to believe it too.

"No matter what the tests say, it'll be okay," he promised and smiled at her.

"What are you two talking about?" they heard Danielle's voice boom. "Why aren't you looking at my latest masterpiece and telling Zoe how cute she looks?"

Liam and Leigh-Anne both chuckled and apologized, moving to where Zoe and Danielle sat to shower the child in compliments.

The pizza had arrived and the four managed to squeeze themselves on Liam's couch as they ate. Liam had told Zoe to sit on his lap but she whined saying that she didn't want to —the last time she sat in his lap he was making her head hurt— until Leigh-Anne told her that she could sit on her lap if she wanted to. Zoe loved the suggestion and never left Leigh-Anne's lap, even when she was done eating she still sat there and talked to her, asking when their next sleepover could be.

Before any of them noticed, the sun had started going down and Zoe had fallen asleep, curled comfortably in Leigh-Anne's lap. 

"Where's her room?" Leigh-Anne asked Liam, holding Zoe securely as she stood up.

Liam stood with her, his arms out and ready to take his daughter. 

"I've got it." She turned her body away from him so he couldn't grab the slumbering child and accidentally wake her.

Liam smiled to himself. He loved how Zoe liked Leigh-Anne already and how Leigh-Anne was so natural with her. The idea of her being pregnant didn't seem half bad when he watched how gently Leigh-Anne laid his daughter down in her bed, tucked her in and rubbed her chubby cheek with her thumb.

"God, she's so cute," she whispered to Liam when he closed her bedroom door.

"Thanks," he said, smiling until he remembered that they still had some unfinished business to attend to. 

"Yeah, I know," she grumbled, seeing the look on his face. 

"The bathroom is right there." Liam pointed directly behind her. 

"Smart idea having the bathroom right near her room," Leigh-Anne noted. 

"Saved me a lot of time when I was potty training her," he joked. But in all seriousness, it had.

Leigh-Anne slipped back into the living room where Danielle say alone flickering through the channels for something to entertain her. She patted the top of the brunette's head and Danielle leaned her head back.

"I'm gonna take the tests."

"Now?" Danielle asked. "I mean, yeah. Now is good. Yeah."

Leigh-Anne grabbed her purse and her phone and headed back to the hallway she left Liam standing in. She gave him a nod and he grabbed her shoulder to stop her before she entered the bathroom.

"It'll be okay," he promised again.

"I know," she replied doubtfully, moving away from him and closing the door behind her. 

Leigh-Anne took a deep breath and opened the two boxes. She read the instructions twice so there wouldn't be any confusion. And when she had positioned herself and was ready to get this done and over with her phone began to ring making her groan.

"Are you okay?" Liam asked on the other side of the wooden door.

"I'm fine. Just a phone call," she told him. 

She had hoped it was Harry. She hadn't heard from him all day and was wondering how bad the damage was and how much his family hated her for spilling the secret they had left him out of. She'd call him before she went to sleep. Surely things would be calmer when everyone was tired of arguing.

"Todd?" she asked. He never called her this late with anything important and usually he would text her beforehand if he just wanted to talk.

"Where are you right now?" he asked quickly and in a way that worried her. 

She almost told him that she was squatting over Liam's toilet ready to pee on a stick but she refrained because that was too much information.

"Forget that," he said hurriedly before she could answer.

"What's wrong Todd?" Her brows furrowed and sucked on her bottom lip.

"You fucked up," he blurted out.

"I know with the —"

"No! There are pictures, Leigh-Anne! Someone has pictures of you kissing Liam when you dropped him off!" her publicist shouted angrily.

"W-what? I-I.." She couldn't put together a sentence. She couldn't put together any other thought besides her being completely screwed.

Harry was still going to kill her on their honeymoon.

She dropped her phone, dropped the test and when Liam heard it he knocked on the door.

"Leigh-Anne?" When she didn't reply he knocked again. "Leigh-Anne? Are you okay?" After seconds of silence he put his hand on the doorknob. "I'm coming in."

He opened the door and saw her phone on the floor, an active call and someone shouting on the line, the test on the floor next to it and Leigh-Anne collapsed on his toilet.

If he wasn't so scared out of his mind, he would've laughed.

"Leigh-Anne?!" he yelled, lightly shaking her shoulders and he remained unresponsive. "Wake up," he said, snapping his fingers in front of her face to no avail. "Danielle!" he yelled. "Danielle, I think she fainted!"

____xx

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmm... Anyone ever pass out on a toilet before? Don't you wake up with the sorest ass of all time or is it just me? Anyone? No? Okay lol
> 
> -unedited
> 
> Outchea! xx


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